American Assassin Review: 2 Ups & 8 Downs

2. The Awful, CGI-Soaked Finale

The movie well and truly jumps the shark in the final 15 minutes or so, when it transforms from a fairly simple action thriller into an aggressively ludicrous, CGI-bathed action extravaganza more befitting a Michael Bay film (minus the money to do it right).

Due to the film's mere $33 million budget, the climactic set-piece, involving warships and helicopters, suffers from ugly, bargain basement visual effects that undermine the ambition of even trying to get something so large-scale in such a modestly-budgeted film.

Ultimately the bad CGI is more distracting than the spectacle is enthralling, and it's safe to say that a more grounded finale would've ultimately been much more engaging.