Deception is an art. Truth is a test. Is love a lie?

🎄Blogmas: Day 5!🎄

 Allied is directed by Robert Zemeckis (The Walk, Back to the Future) and stars Brad Pitt (World War Z, Fight Club) and Marion Cotillard (Inception, The Dark Knight Rises). "In 1942, an intelligence officer in North Africa encounters a female French Resistance fighter on a deadly mission behind enemy lines. When they reunite in London, their relationship is tested by the pressures of war" (IMDb, 2016). Zemeckis used to be one of the most acclaimed directors in Hollywood but is he starting to lose his way?

I just don't think I like Zemeckis' style of filmmaking - I really wasn't a fan of The Walk but I did enjoy Back to the Future - however, that was over 20 years ago now, I just don't think Zemeckis makes the same standard of films that he used to. Allied is bland, dull and slow with mediocre acting and a plot that was such a missed opportunity. I just wasn't a fan of this film and I don't recommend you watch it - however, the friend I went with did enjoy it so it might just be for an acquired taste. I can't even say that it was fun or had some redeeming elements because it was just. so. dull. 

Even though they're not that great, the performances are probably the best thing about Allied - you can't really go wrong with Brad Pitt but honestly, he could have been much more impressive and I really don't think he did much with the material he was given. He can some cool action moments but I wasn't blown away by his performance at all. Pitt is definitely the best in this film as Marion Cotillard has her moments but she is generally pretty sub-parr. Her accent is extremely inconsistent and I think she too could have done so much more with the material she was given - her character was so interesting on paper, she could have been much more interesting on-screen too. The chemistry between the two was ok but due to the narrative, you never were routing for them as you didn't know Cotillard's true intentions. None of the supporting cast really made an impression. 

The concept of this film is actually pretty interesting and intriguing - this film could have easily been a mystery thriller where you were suspicious of the characters the whole time but no, instead we get a tediously slow war drama that only really gets interesting in the last 20 minutes. I think Zemeckis really has trouble creating entertainment - The Walk only had a small chunk of entertaining scenes and Allied is the same. I also thought the reasons for why Pitt and Cotillard were paired up in the first place were never explained - one second Pitt is landing in a Force Awakens-esque desert (with very poor visuals) and the next minute he is meeting Cotillard for dinner. The reveal at the end of the film was kind of given away by the marketing which has been leading audiences in a certain direction and that climax wasn't even worth it. I am pleased the film went in the direction it did because if it turned out that nothing had actually happened, not only would the characters have wasted their time but so would have audiences. 

Allied really is a missed opportunity - it could have easily been much better. Zemeckis should take a leaf out of Denis Villeneuve's book as that guy really knows how to create an atmosphere - actually, I would like to see Villeneuve's version of Allied as I think it would be very good. Everything is on the table for a great movie but the filmmakers just don't use those tools correctly. Some may say - 'but you usually appreciate films with a slow burn' - Allied doesn't really have a slow burn as it isn't really building up to much and in the end, the revelation is not shocking. Slow burns should be gradually revealing more and more information along the way but Allied does not do this and just throws the twist (if you can call it that) on you. 

I had actually rated this film a 54 after first watching but now I've wrote about it, I really didn't like this film at all. Allied is overlong, dull, slow, bland, tedious and really doesn't have anything going for it. How can Brad Pitt and Robert Zemeckis make such a boring film? This is more of a war romantic drama rather than a war thriller. The performances are mediocre, Zemeckis gives more evidence that he has lost his spark and the whole film is just one big missed opportunity. 

47

/100

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