When I think about my love for movies, I can’t help but think about my mom. Growing up, I was exposed to a lot of different movies. I grew up on Harrison Ford action films, the Bond films, and dramas. I wouldn’t be the moviegoer I am today without my mom. When I think about my favorite genre, it would have to be action films. My mom had wanted to see The Amateur, an action film that came out in April of this year. The Amateur was a solid and entertaining movie.

The Amateur focuses on Charles “Charlie” Heller (played by Rami Malek) as he gets ready to go to work. He kisses his wife, Sara (played by Rachel Brosnahan), as she is leaving overseas for a work trip. Charlie works for the CIA as a cryptographer. Charlie is called into his director’s office as he is told that Sara was killed in London during a terrorist attack. Charlie is heartbroken and angry and researches who killed Sara. When he brings this information to his director, he’s told that they will handle it, but they clearly have their own agenda versus bringing in his wife’s killers. Charlie can push back and get specialized training from Robert Henderson (played by Lawrence Fishburne). Charlie is forced to go on the run as everything he’s doing isn’t sanctioned by the government. He plans on taking out his wife’s killers once and for all.

The draw for this movie is that Charlie isn’t built to be a killer. His area of expertise is computers, tech, and putting together explosives. The government dismisses Charlie and doesn’t think he’s capable of doing what he does. In one scene, Charlie kills a man by causing the glass pool to break, sending the man crashing down several stories. There’s an element of creativity to what Charlie does because he doesn’t have the experience of killing anyone. I wouldn’t say that this makes the film unique, but I think it makes the viewer want to root for Charlie.

The cast in this movie is great. I have been a fan of Rami Malek for some time. I think he’s great in anything he’s in. This can be said about Lawrence Fishburne and Rachel Brosnahan, although Rachel is barely in the film. In these action films, the cast is important. Casting actors who have a big following will bring interest in wanting to see this film in theaters.

The Amateur was a solid action film. It was entertaining from start to finish.