The Amateur Review - Bourne's IT guy goes rogue

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“Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least.” - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Just as originality doesn’t always equate to great storytelling, familiarity isn’t always a damnation of it. Assuming you weren’t born yesterday and you enjoy a movie every now and then chances are you’ve seen The Amateur. It was just called something else. That doesn’t necessarily mean it isn’t worth the watch, it just means pay attention to how well it does the familiar things, give notice to the performances and acknowledge when it does things right. And for The Amateur, of all the many things it does that we’ve seen before, there are a few scenes that stand out giving exception to the rule that complete originality is the only route for good cinema.

Without Creature from the Black Lagoon we don’t have The Shape of Water. Ghost in the Shell inspired The Matrix. If it weren’t for Ingmar Bergman’s Scenes From a Marriage, Ari Aster’s Hereditary likely doesn’t exist. While those I just listed have been explicitly said to be inspired by the other, The Amateur’s inspirations can still be assumed pretty assuredly. If Bourne doesn’t lose his identity or demonstrate his supremacy or survive one last ultimatum, The Amateur likely doesn’t play out the same. The Recruit has many similar plot devices as well as pacing and themes. 

Enemy of the State features a protagonist that forgoes violence for more tech forward justice. The original 1981 film of the same name utilized its era during the Cold War playing on themes of paranoia which was a prevalent emotion during those times. The 2025 version plays on paranoia as well but having to do more with self sabotage and treasonous players who delude themselves with self-proclaimed righteousness stemming from generic through lines like, “It’s a matter of National Security.” Or drowning the questionable legality in polluted questions like, “Do you love your country?”

While none of these themes are new in cinema, they are unfortunately timeless with every generation experiencing their own version of such absurdity and lunacy. Case in point – our current administration. Much of this film the protagonist, Heller, is battling his own agency only to then have to face the culprits who murdered his wife in a terrorist attack. So much of his efforts are preventative to make sure people supposedly on his side from mucking everything up. The harder they fight him, the more their culpability stinks up the room. Sound familiar?

Heller is CIA. He is an analyst and decoder. Everyday is the same; important but the same. His personal life is fulfilled by his wife, Sarah. On a particularly unremarkable day, Heller watches Sarah leave for a week on business. Shortly before he expects her to return, he is asked into the CIA director’s office. Having recently found information he believes could be incriminating for some who oversee his position, he’s paranoid his career could be over. He should be so lucky. Between his job and rural homestead, Heller doesn’t watch much television. During his wife’s trip abroad, a terrorist attack takes place at the very hotel she is staying at and unfortunately there were casualties. 

Suddenly the emptiness of his home is deafening. He sees her in every corner, in the sunshine or in the shadows, she’s there, but now only in his memories. Bogged down by immense anger, Heller chooses to channel his rage and requests formal training to pursue and eliminate those involved in the death of his wife. Essentially laughed out of their office, he takes matters into his own hands. He has no ability to physically kill another human being. Even with a gun he’s rendered ineffective. He must rely on his extreme intelligence, tech expertise and abilities enabling him to manipulate the environment to his benefit. He is out of his depth but highly motivated and he brings with him an area of expertise that will shock and awe anyone in his path to vengeance. 

Rami Malek is in the post-Oscar stage of his career and so far it’s been interesting to see him dabble in different kinds of roles. From a nefarious Bond villain to a real life nuclear physicist in Oppenheimer. He’s continuing to prove his status as a leading man more than ever. As Heller, he is one of the most compelling aspects of The Amateur. As a comparison to other similarly themed spy thrillers, he isn’t the most physically imposing. He wouldn’t fare well against someone like Jason Bourne or James Bond. Instead he is wonderfully cast as an intelligent computer expert, analyst and decoder who must resort to alternative means to complete his missions. 

Ever since I first saw him in the series The Pacific, he has always presented a certain amount of duplicity and dare I say arrogance. I mean this as a compliment I swear. He exudes a mysterious presence that leaves you unsure of his intentions which play perfectly in his role as a rogue CIA agent. He utilizes these talents wonderfully as an anguished operative. His time opposite the always compelling Laurence Fishburne are often the best moments of the film. It is the brawn of Fishburne and the intellect of Malek locking horns or clinking beers as perfect opposites of one another.

The Amateur isn’t going to stick around in the psyche of the general population for long but it’s still worth the watch for fans of spy thrillers, tech oriented action flicks and paranoia driven cloak-and-dagger. Rami Malek is engaging as both a fulfilled husband and vengeance fueled spy. When he learns of his wife’s passing is a particular highlight of his talents as an actor. It’s familiar, it’s largely a retread but I think it achieves only what it’s meant to and that’s perfectly fine. It’s a fun afternoon at the movies and sometimes that’s enough. Jason Bourne’s IT guy is off his chain. Beware!

Rated PG-13 For: some strong violence and language

Runtime: 123 minutes

After Credits Scene: No

Genre: Action, Thriller

Starring: Rami Malek, Laurence Fishburne, Holt McCallany, Jon Bernthal

Directed By: James Hawes

Out of 10

Story: 7/ Acting: 8.5/ Directing: 7/ Visuals: 7.5

OVERALL: 7.5/10

Buy to Own: Yes.

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Check out the trailer below: