Le 15h17 pour Paris

I have to confess I didn't research this film to any great extent before I sat down to watch it. However, the two things I did know - mainly courtesy of all marketing - was that it was based on the true story of three men who foil a terrorist attack on a train and that it was directed by Clint Eastwood. Both seemed like equally good reasons to watch the film. And - technically - both of those statements are correct. However, I guess because the promotional material seemed to focus so much on the 'terrorist attack' that I expected something more like 'Under Siege 2' or 'The Commuter' than what I got.

The film starts off with the three Americans as young boys and shows us how they meet. First of all I wasn't that impressed with the acting ability of the boys and was quite pleased when this segment ended. Then we get our first glimpse of what's to come, i.e. something bad happening on a busy commuter train in Europe. And then we're back to the boys again. Only now they're young men and we see what they're doing once they've left education. Only we mainly just focus on one of the three. The other two seem to get relegated into secondary characters. Cue another flash-forward to the terrifying events on the train and we get back to the men travelling round Europe. Then the bit on the train happens. Then the film ends.

Now, you may think I'm being quite cynical and scathing towards the film, but I did actually enjoy it. I just thought it was going to be something it wasn't. Once the child-actors are out of the way the adults take over and they're all decent enough heroes who you find yourself able to root for. Clint Eastwood's direction is nothing special, but it's functional approach works well with the subject matter, i.e. overly-stylish camerawork and effects would seem well over the top and out of place in this film.

It's not a bad film, but I think any audience needs to know that what they're sitting down for is some sort of drama about regular guys (who then happen to get caught up in a terrorist attack). If you go in expecting 'Die Hard on a train' then you're going to leave thoroughly disappointed. It's a slow, character-driven piece that is deliberately underwhelming in order to show how real life terrorist attacks differ to the Hollywood representation. If you're in the mood for something slow, serious and with meaning then you should enjoy this.

Eastwood is never trivial or corny. This could have been an american flag waving hero film (some people see it that way anyway) but in fact it's about a normal guy that has been treated not so well in life by the authorities but at the end has his day and becomes what he always wanted to be: someone that saves lives. It's about life. Not flags. For example, it's interesting when the guys are corrected by the german tourist operator saying that Hitler was under attack by the Russians and NOT the Americans when he killed himself. You can't always be the hero when evil is defeated. I don't see flag waving here.

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

Why Eastwood would direct a screenplay from a Production Assistant/Secretary is baffling. He should've at least looked it over and made changes, or even team her up with a seasoned screenwriter. But what he gave us here, is a flop, and an embarrassment to his filmmaking career.

Even at a mere 94 mins long, the slow pacing and overstuffed filler made this feel like a dragged out 3 hour film. Many critics didn't like the timeline jumps, and/or the unrelated backstory of them as youngsters, but I didn't mind any of that at all. What failed those elements is the lack of cohesiveness of the subplots, and the horrible dialogue and constant cheesy useless scenes (e.g. Selfie stick pics). The only decent part was the 15 min action scene, but the rest was a flaccid dragged out bore. Even though the three actual non-actor heroes were cast, they didn't do too bad and were somewhat convincing, but feel they would've been much better with proper writing and directing.

It's still a worth watch, even to see the heroes reenacting their real life drama, but it's a one time watch when you have nothing else better to watch. It's a generous 6/10 from me.