The 15:17 to Paris (2018)

I had never heard of this movie when I found this in Target the other day. The description on the cover was interesting so I bought the DVD. I should have previewed the movie before I bought it because it was a mistake. Casting the three heroes as themselves was the biggest mistake. It clearly showed that they were not actors and some scenes were so flat that it sounded like they were reading the lines off of the cue cards. It made me appreciate how difficult a job it is to act professionally; I would have probably sounded the same way. Also the plot was not interesting - the actual attack scene on the train was less than ten minutes, and that included the aftermath when they are caring for the wounded. The rest is a movie-length flashback to the three friends as they grow up together, from meeting at a ridiculously strict Catholic school to joining the military / starting careers, and then a long tour of Europe where they sample the local beer, talk to women and dance to mediocre Techno music. No backstory on the terrorist or scenes from his perspective, which might have made the story marginally interesting. I gave the movie 1 star for each of the three heroes; meaning no disrespect to them but this movie just did not work.

This film tells the story of three American soldiers who stopped a massacre on a train to Paris.I have always loved Eastwood's films because they almost always drive me to tears. This time, I am hugely disappointed by this film because the soldiers don't even board the train until 68 minutes into the film. There is simply not enough story from the train to fool 90 minutes to screen time, so the film spends an hour telling how the three soldiers grew up. The back story isn't really relevant or interesting unfortunately. Their heroic act is better made into a short film, instead of a full length feature. This film is unfortunately very weak for an Eastwood film.

Nothing about this movie really stands out except for the fact that it isn't outstanding in any way. The acting isn't terrible - but it certainly isn't good either. Having the real guys play themselves doesn't really bring much to the film. But to be honest, that wasn't what mad the movie sub-par; it was mainly the plot and the fact that they tried to make a full movie out of an event that takes place in maybe 2 minutes in real time. The movie really is about the the lives of the protagonists as they grow up, and quite frankly, it just isn't very interesting! They did an awesome thing at one point in their lives, but the rest of their lives are pretty ho-hum just like everyone else! Doesn't really make for a good movie!

There's a reason acting is a profession. Between the lack of writing and the "acting"; it was just painful.Huge Eastwood fan, service member, knew the story pretty well and was excited to see it was still just terrible. Made "Act of Valor" look like Star Wars.