Olympus Has Fallen

The first of two movies this year based on the hypothetical capturing of the White House by enemy forces, Olympus Has Fallen sets a very gory tone. Starring Gerard Butler as a disgraced secret service agent, the White House is attacked by North Korean terrorists and occupied with the President, played by Aaron Eckhart, taken hostage. When all of those on duty at the White House are killed, Butler’s character must take charge and stealthily fight the enemy from inside the landmark building.

Obviously action films have a lot of violence and in a story like this, it’s necessary in order to build the dire situation. But I must admit I found the killing in Olympus to be especially brutal. Off the top of my head, I can think of four separate head stabbings. One is probably too many. Then the initial conflict, which is quite dramatic, sees secret service and police officers meet their end in huge numbers. The film definitely earned its R rating. But beyond the violence, the film keeps a high level of tension with only appropriate moments of reprieve so the audience can catch their breath.

There is definitely a level of belonging with Butler in the big action role. After taking a break from these types of roles that made him famous, it’s clear that he fits as an action lead. With that, I have to ask why the decision was made to feature Morgan Freeman as the prominent figure on the poster. He plays the Speaker of the House, who becomes acting President when those ahead of him in the line of succession are taken hostage. But this is Butler’s film through and through as he takes on the brunt of the action and the emotional sympathy from the audience. He actually does have more of a dynamic performance than you’d think. But when the film is resolved, it’s clear that the massive body count means this isn’t as tidy a resolution as the script intends it to be.

Each film earns either zero, a half or a full arrow in five categories. The categories are Acting, Writing/Directing, Emotion, Innovation and Overall Impression. The arrows are added up to equal the full score.