The Amateur Preview – Time for a different kind of Killer
In the action thriller The Amateur, Rami Malek is out for vengeance and ready to kill with skill this month.
Everyone loves a good revenge story. The idea of raining down fire and brimstone on those who wronged us always strikes a chord because deep down, when it’s personal, we are all much more ‘eye for an eye’ than turn the other cheek.
But, like every popular genre, it risks becoming stale. Yes, we all still enjoy seeing the bad guys suffer, but at some point, we enter ‘seen it all before’ territory.
So in steps British TV director James Hawes with ‘The Amateur’. A film where the protagonist Charlie Heller (Rami Malek) suffers an unbearable loss and most definitely deserves his vengeance. But unfortunately, like most of us, he doesn’t have the skill or ability to take them out, even after visiting everyone’s favourite sensei, Laurence Fishbourne, for training.
The Amateur Clip – Go Towards the Stairwell
What Charlie does have, though, is a certain set of skills. As an expert CIA cryptographer, he decides to apply his skill set to killing, and before long, he’s outside the law, picking off bad guys as a vigilante.
I love films about vengeance and even more so when that revenge is carried out in a way that not only hurts but also causes lasting mental damage (I hope I’m not exposing my dark side here). One of my favourite movies growing up was the 1975 Count of Monte Cristo starring Richard Chambelain. After suffering a terrible injustice, he returns as a millionaire and systematically destroys their lives without them knowing it was happening until it was too late- Brilliant
The Amateur is one of our Most Wanted Movies for April. Find out what other films made the cut in the latest episode of Most Wanted Movies here
Laurence Fishburne as Henderson in 20th Century Studio’s THE AMATEUR. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved. 
Rami Malek as Heller in 20th Century Studio’s THE AMATEUR. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved. 
(L-R) Marc Rissmann as Mishka Blazhic and Rami Malek as Heller in 20th Century Studios’ THE AMATEUR. Photo by John Wilson. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved. 
(L-R) Rami Malek as Heller and Holt McCallany as Moore in 20th Century Studios’ THE AMATEUR. Photo by Jonathan Olley. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved. 
Laurence Fishburne as Henderson in 20th Century Studios’ THE AMATEUR. Photo by Jonathan Olley. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved. 
Rami Malek as Heller in 20th Century Studios’ THE AMATEUR. Photo by John Wilson. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved. 
(L-R) Rami Malek as Heller and Rachel Brosnahan as Sarah in 20th Century Studio’s THE AMATEUR. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved. 
Laurence Fishburne as Henderson in 20th Century Studio’s THE AMATEUR. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved. 
Rami Malek as Heller in 20th Century Studio’s THE AMATEUR. Photo by John Wilson. © 2024 20th Centruy Studios.
While I don’t expect this to be on that level, I look forward to the creative ways Rami will despatch these bad guys. The Amateur is based on a 1981 novel of the same name by Robert Littel. A movie was also made in 1981 starring Christopher Plumber that was fairly well-received back then, but this time around, I am hoping for something even more visceral. And with a cast that includes the likes of Jon Bernthal and Rachel Brosnaham, I have a feeling we’ll be in for a real treat of technical kills when this remake hits screens on April 11th
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