The American | Leatherheads - A George Clooney Double Feature [Blu-ray]

The American

American assassin Jack has one more job to do before he gets out of the game for good. Hiding out in the Italian countryside, he befriends some of the locals, risking their lives and his own in this taut thriller.

The director is a Dutchman, Anton Corbijn, and “The American” is his second directorial effort after Control (2007), based on the life of Joy Division lead singer, Ian Curtis, and his tragic suicide at 23. Corbijn is also an accomplished still photographer (U2, REM) and widely acclaimed music video director (Depeche Mode, Nirvana, Metallica).

• “"The American" allows George Clooney to play a man as starkly defined as a samurai. His fatal flaw, as it must be for any samurai, is love. Other than that, the American is perfect: Sealed, impervious, and expert, with a focus so narrow it is defined only by his skills and his master. Here is a gripping film with the focus of a Japanese drama, an impenetrable character to equal Alain Delon's in "Le Samourai," by Jean-Pierre Melville.”
• “Here he [Corbijn] paints an idyllic Italian countryside as lyrical as his dialogue is taciturn. There is not a wrong shot. Every performance is tightly controlled. Clooney is in complete command of his effect.

Leatherheads

Pro football player Dodge Connelly is desperate to keep his league from going under and recruits a young college superstar in hopes that he will get people interested in the game again.

Directed by George Clooney, as well as playing the lead (his third standout effort in the director’s chair following “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind” and “Good Night, and Good Luck”), the movie showcases Clooney’s directorial philosophy as a team player, no doubt picked up while working with the Coen brothers, and his generosity toward his collaborators, as an actor and a director, is evident throughout the film.

• “In sports and in movies, star quality counts. We may already know the rules of the game, and what strategy is going to be used in each inning, but it can be a joy just watching the pros perform. George Clooney's "Leatherheads" goes into overtime for no good reason, and the only high-wattage star in the lineup is Clooney himself, but man, he knows how to play. The guy's got smarts, wit, timing, a winning face, a good eye… He's also exceptionally savvy about Hollywood movie history and seems to feel quite co