In some of Tom Cruise’s most popular films he plays characters that are hard to like. He was a jerk in Rain Man, abrasive in Jerry Maguire, a cocky hotshot in Top Gun, a cold-blooded killer in Collateral…the list goes on and on. Needless to say, he’s damn good at it. So Cruise’s newest character Barry Seal – whose life provides the foundation for American Made and who was by all accounts a terrible person who acted out of his own self-interest and self-preservation – is right in his wheelhouse. It’s no surprise then that in Doug Liman’s tightly made drama, you can’t help but cheer on this anti-hero as he stumbles out of one bad situation and into another, constantly staying a step ahead of his own misfortune.
When we’re first introduced to Barry he is employed as a pilot for Trans World Airlines, shepherding people to glamorous locations like Fort Lauderdale and Bakersfield. To liven things up, he starts smuggling Cuban cigars into the United States through Canadian airports, which draws the attention of CIA agent Monty Schafer (Domhnall Gleeson). Schafer needs a skilled pilot to run reconnaissance missions in Central and South America, offering Seal a modest compensation package and a chance to serve his country in return. The missions take Barry into dangerous territories, but he’s always able to make an escape and get home to his family, who still think he’s with TWA. Rumours of his daring flights soon reach an up-and-coming drug kingpin named Pablo Escobar, who is having trouble moving his product from a reclusive Colombian airstrip to the States. It’s an easy decision for Barry; the money is better, and the CIA is willing to turn a blind eye to the whole situation as long as Seal holds up his end of their arrangement. From there his career takes wild twists and turns that see him working for the Medellin Cartel, Manuel Noriega, Reagan’s White House, and eventually the DEA.
As we jump through time from the mid-70s to early 80s, the story is punctuated with taped testimonials from Cruise’s Seal in what we later learn are something of a confessional for the man. It’s an effective way to give the character a relatable side, as are the many scenes with Seal’s family. Sarah Wright Olsen plays Barry’s wife Lucy, a strong-willed matriarch who puts her family’s well-being above all else, but even she can’t resist the flamboyant lifestyle Barry’s work offers them. The rest of the supporting cast are solid in their roles, especially Caleb Landry Jones as Barry’s down and out brother-in-law J.B. whose arrival puts Barry’s whole enterprise at risk.
Liman and his cinematographer César Charlone succeed in giving the film that old school, early 80s aesthetic, and with a full decade’s worth of material to work with, the film’s two hour runtime never drags. That’s refreshing considering recent drug/gun running films like War Dogs and Lord of War weren’t all that enjoyable. American Made also acts as a good Tom Cruise palate cleanser after The Mummy flopped this summer. Love him or hate him, Cruise carries the film from start to finish and makes American Made a great end-of-summer indulgence.
Reviewed by Kyle Miller.
