Directed by:
Robert ZemeckisScreenplay:
Steven KnightCinematography:
Don BurgessComposer:
Alan SilvestriCast:
Brad Pitt, Marion Cotillard, Jared Harris, Simon McBurney, Lizzy Caplan, Daniel Betts, Matthew Goode, Camille Cottin, August Diehl, Thierry Frémont (more)VOD (1)
Plots(1)
Set during World War Two, the film follows Max Vatan (Brad Pitt), a French-Canadian spy who meets fellow agent Marianne Beausejour (Marion Cotillard) while on a dangerous mission behind enemy lines in Casablanca. Tasked with killing a Nazi official, the pair pose as lovers in order to gain access to their target. After developing genuine feelings for each other while working together, Max and Marianne reunite in London where they decide to get married and start a family of their own. However, not long after settling into their new life, a shocking development reveals one of them to be a double agent and leaves the other facing some very difficult decisions. (Paramount Pictures AU)
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Reviews (11)
Zemeckis and Burgess revel in subtle camera-special effects, but instead of a marital drama, they unwittingly chart a cheesy WWII romance where sex is the equivalent of a desert storm and a Luftwaffe precision strike family picnic. These images, painstakingly copied from Spielberg, including Williams' score, only prove that some genres are passé even for experienced storytellers. The film is subjectively four hours long.
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If it weren’t for the botoxed Brad Pitt and several scenes that reeked of Hollywood, where for instance a couple makes love in the midst of a sandstorm in Morroco and Marion Cotillard then gives birth during an air raid of London, I would be literally excited about the movie. I haven’t seen such great war atmosphere for a long time, which actually is no wonder. Robert Zemeckis is a great director and he’s truly great at creating high-quality atmospheres. The ending of the movie was also literally aced, but I guess Angelina Jolie probably wouldn’t share my excitement…
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Knight doesn’t write bad stories and when he pays homage to Hollywood classics like Casablanca, he manages to add an element of modernity. Pitt’s cold fish Max Vatan melting in the arms of Marion Cotillard in action scenes is still an effective killing machine and the spying game is much more convincing than usual. Details, details and more details. Zemeckis has made a strong genre piece with abundant gleaming camera shots and, the occasional feeble special effect here and there doesn’t matter in the slightest. A quality romantic wartime drama about family, love and good people in a difficult situation. Ideal for a date.
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Allied is definitely a simplification of history, but in a nice retro-Hollywood guise that makes us turn a blind eye to that
fact. It is surprisingly not tacky, dramatic bordering on chilling due to the atmosphere of the period in which the story
takes place. It is also perfectly directed with cool professionalism and without the tear-jerking we might expect from
Robert Zemeckis, and without any grand love motifs we might expect from Alan Silvestri. Because such a well-written script with
such a powerful story doesn't need any of that. The ending totally got me.
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The triple combo of Robert Zemeckis, Brad Pitt and Nazis simply can't go wrong. Allied portrays the view of World War II from a different angle, which is always interesting. While the film is primarily a romantic drama, the chemistry between Pitt and the lovely Marion Cotillard works well here, the atmosphere is sombre and properly retro. There are only two action scenes, but they've got oomph, they're hard-hitting, and the party scene is one of the film's highlights. I'm a little disappointed that the film doesn't build up too much, the pace is rather slower, but I didn't get bored and that counts. The ending is properly shocking, which also rounds it up to four stars. Pluses: Excellent direction, excellent acting, retro atmosphere, R-rated. Minuses: longer running time, little action.70%
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