I know of Max Landis through his YouTube rants about Superman when Man of Steel came out. Full disclosure, I kinda liked Man of Steel but from the video I remember, Landis had many many issues. That's his opinion and he's entitled to it. I just think he's wrong. Altruism is all well in good but sometimes the murderous villain just needs to be killed so he won't continue murdering people. I thought the movie did a good job presenting a moral conundrum in which Superman would be forced into a choice he didn't like. To me, it was much more interesting than a comic book solution of the problem, which would have been something made up out of nowhere. That's how comics tend to work. That doesn't have to be brought into movies.
What were we talking about??
I'm complaining about Landis because he wrote American Ultra. The previews for American Ultra looked not good, but I heard some good things after it came out so I gave it a shot. I was right the first time.
It's not an utter failure. I see the appeal of the concept (which Landis also uses in his Mr. Right script), but it doesn't work here.
The tone bothered me throughout. It's a slacker Jason Bourne, but it takes itself too seriously. The cast would be better off in a pure comedy, or at least a movie that's more comedy than action/drama. Just look at this cast and tell me this shouldn't be a comedy: Topher Grace (known almost exclusvely for his sitcom work), Jesse Eisenberg (at his best in things like Zombieland), Tony Hale (Buster doesn't have a single funny moment!) and Connie Britton (cut her teeth on Spin City). I should be laughing my ass off for 96 minutes!
Not so coincidentally, Mr. Right plays a similar angle with more comedy and it works a little bit better. I still didn't love it, but the high concept makes more sense with humor.
First Viewing: 2+1+2+2+1 = 8