Mike Howell one day finds out he has some amazing abilities
The stoner movie has been around for decades. It began with comedic stars Tommy Chong and Cheech Marin. They starred in a ton of comedy films and made stoner films very popular. Since then there have been a number of movies that deal with marijuana in a comedic way like Pineapple Express and This is the End. American Ultra is not like any of these movies. It deals with a new type of stoner who finds out he is more than a simple guy who works at a convenience store. It is full of mystery and a ton of violence and is not for the weak stomached.
Mike is a man who has a simple life. He lives with his girlfriend Phoebe and works at a small convenience store. For some reason he has anxiety attacks that prevent him from moving forward in his life. He wants to be the man she deserves but no matter how hard he tries he always finds a way to screw things up. So he smokes a lot of pot and does his best to keep her happy. But he wonders if Phoebe was meant for something more. Mike has a desire to take her to exotic locations and provide for her but has no idea how to accomplish this.
One night two men try to harm Mike and with nothing more than a simple utensil he kills both of them. Mike is shocked that he did this act and has no idea how it even happened. It naturally gives him a huge amount of anxiety and he has no idea what to do about it. Phoebe shows up to help him calm down, but it raises a lot of questions. Who were these men? Why did they want to kill him so badly? And how on earth did this stoner defend himself like that?
There are good and bad things about this film. It is a bit of a darker comedy but has some heartfelt moments mixed in. Mike is a person with a good heart who finds out something that is hard for him to believe, but his core values never change. He knows he loves Phoebe and will do anything to protect her. The action scenes are amazing and always bring a lot of violence and always end with someone being either hurt bad or killed. The plot is original and is not something that comes out of the pipe everyday.
But there are a few problems with this film. It is full of drug references and has a huge amount of violence. Those who marketed this movie did a poor job of showing just how gory it really is. I enjoy movies like this and there were a few scenes that turned my stomach. Those who do not like violent films with want to steer clear of this one. Also people who don’t find drug humor amusing will be very disappointed if they happen to see this picture.
The movie gets 6/10. This is because the film will not be for everyone. It is by no means a bad film and has a good soundtrack, but there is too much drugs going on and they show up at the most ridiculous of times. The villain is not really that evil and this makes brings the film down a few notches. It also goes slow for the first few acts, but it does get better once things become clear to the hero. But those who want to see a good violent stoner comedy will have fun seeing this movie this Friday.
If you want to see a lot of violence this is a film you should see with your male friends. If you enjoy stoner comedies this is a movie you should give a chance. But it is not something any child should see and older people would be better off seeing something else.
Check out the trailer below: