The Young Americans * (1993, Harvey Keitel, Iain Glen, John Wood, Terence Rigby) – Classic Movie Review 11,125

‘London Is Not Only Losing Her Soul To The Americans, She’s Selling It.’

Co-writer /director Danny Cannon’s 1993 unpersuasive British police thriller The Young Americans stars Harvey Keitel as hardened New York Police Detective John Harris, who is sent to London to help British special task force bosses Edward Foster and Richard Donnelly (Iain Glen and John Wood) in their war against a murderous drugs gang of youngsters recruited by an American gangster, Carl Frazer (Viggo Mortensen).

Keitel persuades a teenager, Christian O’Neill (Craig Kelly), whose dad is killed and buddy is wounded by gangsters, to help him to catch the bad guys.

The Young Americans has a sparse, routine plot that gets undernourished scripting and overemphatic handling from director Cannon. Shot by cinematographer Vernon Layton, there is plenty of low-life capital city atmosphere, although weirdly the images make London look like a foreign town unrecognisable by anyone who lives there. Though typecast, Keitel goes through the motions well enough, Kelly holds the screen nervously but effectively, and Terence Rigby is outstanding as an old-style local villain, Sidney Callow.

There is a cast of good actors, but none of the other performers is actually at all convincing, least of all Keith Allen as shady club owner Jack Doyle, though nobody else really has anything much to do. Despite all the attempts to pep it up with restless direction and flashy photography, this is a sluggish, tired action thriller.

The UK Government criticised it for glamorising youth violence.

The main cast are Harvey Keitel, Craig Kelly, Iain Glen, John Wood, Terence Rigby, Thandie Newton, Viggo Mortensen, and Keith Allen.

© Derek Winnert 2021 Classic Movie Review 11,125

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