Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!
A day dedicated to the international celebration of love, full of romantic dates, bouquets of roses, cuddling on the couch with rom-com movies, and being with that special someone in your life.
Or, if you’re single like me, it’s probably just a normal Wednesday for you.
Either way, the day has little to do with what I’m reviewing here today, and while it has the city of love in its title, this movie does not really contribute to the atmosphere of today’s festivities.
A handy disclaimer: there will be some spoilers for the movie The 15:17 to Paris discussed within this article.
You have been warned.
Directed by Clint Eastwood, The 15:17 to Paris was released in theaters on February 9.
It is a film that depicts the true story of how three Americans helped to thwart a terrorist attack abroad a train bound for Paris.
Normally, I’m a little dubious of movies that have “based on a true story” written anywhere in their promotion.
However, there was one detail about this movie that captivated me and separated itself from most films that carry this particular claim: the three American heroes of this story are being portrayed by the actual heroes that lived through the event in person.
The 15:17 to Paris tells the following story:
On August 21, 2015, American tourists Spencer Stone, Alek Skarlatos, and Anthony Sadler – along with Chris Norman, a British businessman – were aboard a train heading to Paris when Ayoub El Khazzani left the train’s bathroom armed with weapons.
Stone initiated the defense among the group of friends, tackling Khazzani and placing him in a choke-hold while getting repeatedly stabbed with Khazzani’s knife in retaliation.
Sadler, Skarlatos, and Norman abruptly came to his defense, beating Khazzani until he lost consciousness.
Together, the four kept Khazzani subdued and alive until the train arrived at its destination in Paris.
For their actions, Stone, Skarlatos, and Sadler were recognized as heroes by not only the French government, but back home in the United States as well.
Stone was awarded the French Legion of Honor in recognition for his amazing display of courage and his role in stopping the terrorist. It is truly an incredible story that deserves to be told, and the actual American heroes themselves were on the screen to share it.
From what I know, this would not be the first time that people have starred in films depicting their real-life story, and there may be a reason it does not happen all that often. For all the amazing things they did in their life during the time it occurred, average citizens may not be able to hold an audience’s attention as well as a professional actor would.
However, the performances of Stone, Skarlatos, and Sadler were likable enough, and the knowledge that they were reliving their story on-screen continued to ring in the back of my mind. But here’s the kicker: all the action that I saw in the trailer for this film, the catalyst for what had me buy the movie ticket in the first place?
All that story was sequestered within the last fifteen to twenty minutes of the film, and the movie is a total of 96 minutes long. Put simply, the movie is a slow-build to the confrontation on the train, the majority of it dedicated to following the boys’ lives in school and at home.
I’m not a math major, but the payoff does not seem to equal the endurance. Now I don’t hold the three heroes accountable for the film’s flaws. They are legitimate heroes and their actions were astounding. I commend them all for showing up on the big-screen and reliving a horrifying moment in their lives.
It’s a story that was truly worth telling, but I’m just not sure it was told right. Rotten Tomatoes has the movie rated at 20% with forty-eight total reviews. However, the audience score has it rated at a 50%.
Chances are, you will like this movie and the story it is trying to tell. Just know that it will take a long time before you get to the “good” part.
Gisselle Lopez
Features Editor