ReviewAngel Has Fallen film review: Gerard Butler is back as tables turn in series’ third instalment
- After Olympus Has Fallen and London Has Fallen, Gerard Butler’s world-weary secret service agent returns to foil another villainous plot
- Director Ric Roman Waugh fully understands what his target audience wants, and they are unlikely to be disappointed
2.5/5 stars
After successfully foiling two assassination attempts on the US president in Olympus Has Fallen (2013) and London Has Fallen (2016), this third instalment in the modest-budget action franchise sees the tables turn on Gerard Butler’s world-weary secret service agent.
Wisely choosing not to compete with the grand-scale blockbusters dominating today’s marketplace, Angel Has Fallen harks back to the more gritty, grounded action films of the 1980s, while taking a few half-hearted swings at American politics and the privatisation of the war on terror.
Mike Banning (Butler) is yet again on the verge of retirement when he is framed for an attempt on the life of Morgan Freeman’s President Trumbull. With the entire nation’s law enforcement on his tail, Banning seeks out his reclusive father (Nick Nolte), a paranoid conspiracy nut conveniently hoarding a private arsenal.
Together they must clear Banning’s name, save his family and reinstate the injured POTUS before the country is steered into a bogus war with Russia.
From the moment they appear on screen, it is immediately obvious which characters are the real villains. Danny Huston, as Banning’s former war-buddy-turned-private-contractor, screams “bad guy” from his first desperate plea for a government military contract.