The 15:17 to Paris

My wife and I watched this at home on DVD from our public library.

This movie is criminally underrated. Seems that many viewers just wanted to see action on the train. While that is the climax it takes all of 15 minutes to show that and it is gripping. That alone would not have made a worthwhile movie.

But Eastwood made a movie about the three men and their lives leading up to that point. They were friends in grade school, they were good kids but got into typical schoolboy mischief. As young adults they each went their own ways but stayed in touch. One of them received training in the Air Force that came in very handy. In 2015 they agreed to meet in Europe to do some sightseeing, gradually working their way towards France. They took the 15:17 to Paris.

The three men Alek, Anthony, and Spencer from Sacramento, play themselves. It didn't start out that way, many actors auditioned for the parts, but in the end Eastwood felt it would be most authentic to use them. And I think it worked out great. Sure they are not professional actors but they were there, they know exactly how everything went down, they are of course authentic, and each does a fine job.

When the terrorist, armed with several hundred rounds of ammunition, began his attack the men didn't hesitate. They did what should be done more often in situations like this, charge the shooter and subdue him. For their bravery and effectiveness they received the highest honors from France.

Good movie, and the 12-minute "making of" on the DVD is interesting.

I really don't understand the dislike for this movie. I enjoyed the back story, superimposed over the beginning of the conflict on the train. Eastwood shows us how these boys lifestyles contributed to putting them in the perfect frame of mind and experiences to thwart this particular attempt at terror. I've seen people commenting on their acting abilities but honestly, I thought they did better than some people who actually call themselves actors. Eastwood and these three men did a great job with an amazing story and I was very glad I took the chance on it

If this movie was an experiment, it mainly failed. The movie drags on and on with pointless scenes and zero dramatic build-up. The real life characters-love their bravery and courage to be sure-are not exactly gripping actors. Clint should have left the acting to professional actors. This could have been so much better if the story had focused on the terrorist's path, maybe in parallel with the heroes. Their life story just wasn't remarkable or interesting. The last 5% of the movie was good, but this was a long road to a small house.

While it doesn't come close to Clint Eastwood's best films, I still definitely enjoyed this story of life and bravery., but some will find the film too slow and just waiting for the thwarted terrorist attack. We all know the story, 3 Americans stop an attempted terrorist attack aboard a train to Paris, but the film is almost barely about that, its more of story about their lives and what led them to their destiny. I only really sort of didn't like the acting, which I will discuss later, but for the most part I had no issues with this film, which is not over-patriotic flag waving propaganda like many anti-military Liberals will say it is. Its a story about the lives of men as well as when bravery is forced upon average citizens.

First off, about the acting, the Americans didn't do the best job, but that is understandable because these are not actors, but the real men who were there. So its very clear that they are untrained actors, even with the help of veteran actor Clint Eastwood. The story was well put together, chronicling the lives of the heroes in question. Though some of the touching an emotional conversations are bit cheesy, which is surprising coming from Clint Eastwood but it goes by quickly and ws no real issue. But over all I thoroughly enjoyed this film, even with its slight flaws that honestly only bothered me slightly.

I would recommend it.

Spencer Stone and Alek Skarlatos are childhood best friends. Spencer's mom (Judy Greer) and Alek's mom (Jenna Fischer) are single moms. The kids often get in trouble and the principal of the Christian school blames their upbringing. The friends befriend fellow trouble maker Anthony Sadler. Spencer and Alek would join the military. On their leave, they decide on an European vacation with their lifelong buddy Anthony. They are on the train to Paris where they confront a terrorist.

The basic problem is that director Clint Eastwood is asking too much from these real life heroes. They are not trained actor and they can't hold the screen. I do like the childhood section which obvious does not have the three real people. It also ties into Spencer's heroism a couple of times. In reality, that's all that's needed. It just needs a couple of more scenes that relate to his impulse to act at that moment. Otherwise, the movie needs more of the initial fight without the three Americans. Quite frankly, the first third of the movie could be getting on the train, first noticing the long bathroom break, and then the struggle up to the point when Spencer peers around the seat. Then it can go back to their childhood and cut back on some of their adult lives to save them from their acting limitations. Eastwood's conviction is bigger than his pragmatism. Greengrass would have smoked this.