Based on the novel by Robert Littell, The Amateur (2025) is directed by James Hawes and features a screenplay from Gary Spinelli and Ken Nolan. It stars Rami Malek, Lawrence Fishburne, Rachel Brosnahan, Holt McCallany, Julianne Nicholson, Jon Bernthal, Michael Stuhlbarg, Caitriona Balfe, and Adrian Martinez. The story follows Charlie Heller (Malek), a high-level CIA hacker who learns that his wife, Sarah (Brosnahan), was killed in a terrorist attack. With his superiors seemingly uninterested in finding those responsible, Charlie decides to take matters into his own hands. Despite his lack of proper field training, Charlie uses his near-superhuman intellect to bring his wife’s killers to justice – even if that means sacrificing his own life in the process. 

Despite the fact that Malek doesn’t bring anything particularly new to the table as Charlie, the character feels like a perfect vehicle for his strengths as an actor. This kind of atypical, more cerebral action-thriller protagonist feels like a breath of fresh air. The character’s relationship with his late wife is unoriginal, but aside from that, the script does a great job of making Charlie feel like an authentic human being. If it weren’t for a few key flaws to balance his near-superhuman hacking skills, the character would feel like a boring caricature.  

As for the supporting cast, Fisburne, McCallany, and Nicholson provide solid work in their roles as various members of the CIA. They nail the film’s dead serious, Bourne-like tone and mostly succeed in selling the story’s high-level stakes. Jon Bernthal is great as always, but the script never quite figures out what to do with his character. In his last scene, he delivers a monologue that, I suppose, is meant to be meaningful, but only reiterates themes that are already clear as day. As for Michael Stuhlbarg, who plays the film’s ultimate villain, I felt he was entirely miscast. Charlie wants to kill him, but knows it isn’t the right path. Stuhlbarg’s character is calm, charismatic, and reasonable, which makes Charlie’s decision to spare him somewhat easy. The character should have been someone we desperately want Charlie to kill. That way, his decision to hold back would have been infinitely more triumphant. 

The script devotes a satisfying amount of time to establishing its various side characters, and it also provides them with individual moments to shine. Sure, Malek gets most of the cool moments, but that doesn’t mean the script leaves everyone else hanging. For the most part, this is a fairly standard yet well-made spy thriller experience that harkens back to the kinds of films made in the wake of The Bourne Identity (2002). On a deeper level, the film doesn’t offer much to latch onto, but there is one particular theme that stands out: The idea that modern warfare/technology enables highly depersonalized violence, which in turn makes violence easier to carry out.

Although it’s mostly a strong thriller, it still features a handful of mistakes. The sloppy editing makes the passage of time feel inconsistent, but the script also has a couple of moments that stretch credulity beyond the point of no return. These knocks don’t outweigh its strengths, but that still doesn’t mean the film is one I’d recommend you run out to see.

Overall, this is a well-executed throwback to the more darkly toned spy thrillers of the mid-2000s. It struggles to tread any new ground, but it’s serviceably entertaining from start to finish if you’re the type who enjoys the genre. It’s inoffensive, “kill two hours” entertainment in its purest form. Nothing more, nothing less. B-