Review: London Has Fallen BD + Screen Caps

THE MOVIE – 3.0/5

I’d like to think London Has Fallen, and its predecessor Olympus Has Fallen, to be call back to the action genre from the 1980s, often brutal and unforgiving with ridiculous storylines and over-the-top violence and while some might find it to be passé, I enjoy the hell out of them. Now, LHF isn’t as good as Olympus yet on a primal level, I did find this sequel, unnecessary as it might be, entertaining.

Set a few years after the evens of Olympus, which unless I missed it is never even referenced, we find Secret Service Agent Mike Banning (GERARD BUTLER) about to become a father as well as compete with Jack Bauer to become the unluckiest bastard to ever live, although I’d say Bauer has more than a leg up in that category.

Banning is now President Benjamin Asher’s (AARON ECKHART) primary agent and when the British Prime Minister dies, the heads of states around the world are set to arrive to attend the funeral and pay their respects, including Asher much to the disapproval of Secret Service Director Lynne Jacobs (ANGELA BASSETT) due to the logistical challenges. But Asher must go and his arrival goes off without a hitch… until a legion of terrorists put into motion an attack years in the making, one where each and every head of state is targeted for assassination, grenades go off and the attackers are disguised as police and first responders resulting in cars exploding, bullets flying non-stop and creating every obstacle for Banning to get the President to safety.

When Marine One, following Marine Two and Three being taken out, crashes into a field, Banning must guide President Asher while the terrorists are on the hunt for their primary target. Following a scene in an abandoned train station, to which Banning tortures a guy so his brother can hear him die over the air, he and Asher make it to an MI6 safe house run by Agent Jacqueline Marshall (CHARLOTTE RILEY). However, they’re not even safe there as the terrorists storm the compound which means more running for their lives for Banning and Asher.

Meanwhile, at home, Martin Trumbull (MORGAN FREEMAN), now Vice President, with the other defense cabinet members, attempt to help the situation on their end as well as get a call from the mastermind, Aamir Barkawi (ALON ABOUTBOUL) who is seeking revenge for a drone strike aimed at him but instead killed his daughter at her wedding reception.

The plot for London Has Fallen is certainly asinine and on the convoluted side and even more so compared with the attack on the White House in Olympus. However, I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was entertained in spite of a terrorist attack that’s done to the extreme, even beyond reality, though to be fair movies like this are more akin to hyper-reality than anything else. I enjoyed watching Gerard Butler’s Banning connecting with his inner Jack Bauer killing, even torturing terrorists to the point where the President even asks if that was necessary, in response to Banning killing one over the radio for his brother to hear, and Banning simple response was: “no”.

Gerard Butler was never an actor I consider had range yet for a movie of this caliber, which as I said harkens back to the 1980s, this seems to be in his wheelhouse as a believable, and oft indestructible, action hero. It may not tax his acting skills, which generally aren’t too bad, and instead he utilizes the physicality and makes it work. Aaron Eckhart as the President is less feeble compared to how he was in OHF and seems to have a grasp on using an automatic quite efficiently. Like many parts of this film, suspension of disbelief needs to be switched on. Even so, Eckhart and Butler work well off of one another and that friendship at least makes the film ever the more enjoyable.

The supporting cast of some good to great actors doesn’t have a whole heck of a lot to do so the script provides them with something to do, meaning finding the bad guy’s weakness that would eventually help Banning invade the base of operations. Morgan Freeman is once again cool, calm and collected in his limited role (where he more or less sits the entire time looking concerned at a blank wall monitor no doubt) while Melissa Leo, Radha Mitchell and Robert Forster also reprise their roles though they’re mostly fillers that, like Freeman, are more reactionary than having much of an impact on the plot. Angela Bassett at least gets a bit more to do but her part is cut down by comparison from the first movie. And Alon Aboutboul, a fine actor in his own right, gets the thankless task of playing a bland villain.

London Has Fallen was helmed by Babak Najafi, taking over from Antoine Fuqua who declined to return that, according to the grapevine, was due to the script. As such, Najafi, whose previous works include a couple episodes of “Banshee”, seemed to handle the action well where at the very least we can see what’s going on and the violence is executed with as much brutality was we saw in Olympus.

SPECIAL FEATURES – 1.5/5

This release comes with a semi-glossy, title-embossed slip cover. Inside is the standard DVD Copy and redemption code for the Digital HD copy.

The Making of London Has Fallen (13:16; HD) is your standard behind-the-scenes featurette with press-like interviews by the cast (including Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart and Morgan Freeman) and crew as they discuss the process of making the sequel.

Guns, Knives & Explosives (7:42; HD) – This contains more BTS footage focusing on the weapons and amping up the action.

Previews – Self-Less, Sinister 2, Black Sea, The Forest, Closed Circuit, Hanna

VIDEO – 4.0/5

AUDIO – 5.0/5

OVERALL – 3.0/5