Olympus Has Fallen (Film Review)

2013 FilmDistrict
Directed by: Antoine Fuqua; Written by: Creighton Rothenberger and Katrin Benedikt
Starring: Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett, Robert Forster, Cole Hauser, Finley Jacobsen, Ashley Judd, Melissa Leo, Dylan McDermott, Radha Mitchell, and Rick Yune
MPAA Rating: R; Running Time: 119 Minutes
The Nicsperiment Score: 7/10

Mike Banning is not only in charge of the President's Secret Service detail, he also seems to be the President's best friend....until an icy road accident results in the First Lady's death. The accident is not Mike's fault, but the pain drives the two men apart. Banning leaves to work at the Treasury Department, just around the corner from the White House...and good thing, because Olympus is about to fall. Two years after the icy accident, incredibly well-armed North Koreans execute a nearly flawless tactical plan to take down White House security and disable defense forces around D.C., then hold the President and other high-ranking officials hostage in the White House's own bunker. Did I say "nearly" flawless? Well, the Koreans forgot about one thing: Big Mike Banning. 
2013's Olympus Has Fallen, directed with "I know this is ridiculous, but let's see how awesome I can make it look" abandon by Antoine Fuqua, nods at Die Hard, nods at Air Force One, nods at any number of patriotic 80's and 90's action thrillers, then says "hold my beer," grabs an American flag with one hand, an M4 Carbine with the other, and blows stuff up gloriously for 119 minutes. The terrorists' plan shouldn't work anywhere near as effectively as it does and seems to bend logic, but then again, we live in a world where 9/11 happened. 
As Banning, Butler is game to break as many necks, stab as many skulls, and fire as many bullets as Antoine Fuqua asks. This is one of several roles Butler was born to play.  When you've got Angela Bassett, Morgan Freeman, Aaron Eckhart, and Robert Forster playing it straight back at the office, you can go as off the leash as you want, and few if any other actors could have convincingly played Butler's role here in 2013...or maybe even in 2023. The script might present more logic gaps than memorable lines, but it puts enough pieces in play for Fuqua and Butler to blast apart, and gave me just the fist-pumping, flag-waving bravado I wanted. Rick Yune also delivers the kind of constantly smirking, yet physically menacing villainous performance upon which his American acting career built its foundation. Watching Yune and Butler threaten each other over video and walkie-talkie is delightful, as is the final payoff to their climactic, face-to-face showdown.
Overall, if you wished someone had carried the 90's action film vibe into the 21st Century, AND BOY HAVE I, Olympus Has Fallen is clutching VHS copies of The Rock and Con Air to its chest as tightly as possible, and while it may not have that winking 90's charm, its got everything else you AND I could possibly want.