{"id":13434,"date":"2025-04-09T15:42:04","date_gmt":"2025-04-09T22:42:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/?p=13434"},"modified":"2025-12-11T16:49:01","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T23:49:01","slug":"the-amateur","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/2025\/the-amateur\/","title":{"rendered":"The Amateur * Love Makes People Do Crazy Things"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-13439\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/The_Amateurposter.jpg?resize=125%2C185&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"125\" height=\"185\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/The_Amateurposter.jpg?resize=203%2C300&amp;ssl=1 203w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/The_Amateurposter.jpg?w=405&amp;ssl=1 405w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 125px) 100vw, 125px\" \/>Charlie Heller is a brilliant CIA decoder whose world comes crashing down when his wife dies in a London terrorist attack. When his supervisors refuse to take action, his intelligence becomes the ultimate weapon as he embarks on a dangerous trek across the globe to track down those responsible.<\/p>\n<p>KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Juliana S. comments, \u201c<em>The Amateur<\/em> is such a captivating film! Through storylines and characters the movie shows how one should live in the moment and appreciate everything that they have\u2026 The film\u2019s message is that love makes people do crazy things, and one should never take something for granted.\u201d See her full review below.<\/p>\n<p>The Amateur<br \/>\nBy Juliana S, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic, age 16<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/PqQYAL6Doto?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_13436\" style=\"width: 231px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-13436\" class=\" wp-image-13436\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/TheAmateur.c.jpg?resize=221%2C147&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"221\" height=\"147\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/TheAmateur.c.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/TheAmateur.c.jpg?w=600&amp;ssl=1 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 221px) 100vw, 221px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-13436\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rami Malek as Heller and Caitriona Balfe as Inquiline in 20th Century Studios&#8217; THE AMATEUR. Photo by John Wilson. \u00a9 2024 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.<\/p><\/div>\n<p><em>The Amateur<\/em> is such a captivating film! Through storylines and characters the movie shows how one should live in the moment and appreciate everything that they have.<\/p>\n<p>The story revolves around a young man, Charlie (Rami Malek), who is a hardworking and dedicated CIA agent. After he learns about a destructive terrorist attack in London in which his wife, Sarah (Rachel Brosnahan), is unfortunately killed, he is determined to take immediate, harsh action. However, when the CIA refuses to comply with his requests, Charlie decides to take matters into his own hands. The film follows his difficult journey as he tracks down those who are connected to this wife\u2019s death, diving into the complicated emotional struggles that come with seeking revenge.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_13435\" style=\"width: 229px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-13435\" class=\" wp-image-13435\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/TheAmateur.d.jpg?resize=219%2C146&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"219\" height=\"146\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/TheAmateur.d.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/TheAmateur.d.jpg?w=600&amp;ssl=1 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 219px) 100vw, 219px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-13435\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Marc Rissmann as Mishka Blazhic and Rami Malek as Heller in 20th Century Studios&#8217; THE AMATEUR. Photo by John Wilson. \u00a9 2024 20th Century Studios<\/p><\/div>\n<p>One actress who left me wanting to know more about her was Caitr\u00edona Balfe, who plays Inquiline, a sharp and humble spy. Balfe not only knows how to play her character, but she truly embodies the very essence of who Inquiline is. She uses her eyes to convey emotions that words could never fully express, from moments of harshness to soft tenderness. Caitr\u00edona Balfe\u2019s emotional blue eyes are captivating, pulling the audience deeper and deeper into the story with every glance. Another actor who made me feel as though this is a true story is Rami Malek. Malek plays the determined, quick-witted Charlie Heller with a feeling of authenticity. As an award-winning actor, he shows just how deeply he can live through his character.<\/p>\n<p>Rami Malek uses his body language wonderfully to us through the emotional plot. When Charlie is scared but unable to vocalize it, his hands fidget or shake uncontrollably. In contrast, when he is fearless, his posture and movements become more powerful, and his steps more deliberate, showing a wide range of emotional transformations that can resonate deeply with any one person in the audience.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_13437\" style=\"width: 229px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-13437\" class=\" wp-image-13437\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/TheAmateur.b.jpg?resize=219%2C146&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"219\" height=\"146\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/TheAmateur.b.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/TheAmateur.b.jpg?w=600&amp;ssl=1 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 219px) 100vw, 219px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-13437\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Laurence Fishburne as Henderson and Rami Malek as Heller in 20th Century Studios&#8217; THE AMATEUR. Photo by John Wilson. \u00a9 2025 20th Century Studios.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The film\u2019s message is that love makes people do crazy things, and one should never take something for granted. For me, this film was very successful in motivating me to appreciate the small things in life and live in the moment.<\/p>\n<p>I give <em>The Amateur<\/em> 5 out of 5 stars, and recommend it for ages 12 to 18, plus adults. <em>The Amateur<\/em> releases in theaters on April 11, 2025.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/DCWcK4c-F8Q?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Charlie Heller is a brilliant CIA decoder whose world comes crashing down when his wife dies in a London terrorist attack. When his supervisors refuse to take action, his intelligence becomes the ultimate weapon as he embarks on a dangerous trek across the globe to track down those responsible.<\/p>\n<p>KIDS FIRST! Film Critic Juliana S. comments, \u201cThe Amateur is such a captivating film! Through storylines and characters the movie shows how one should live in the moment and appreciate everything that they have\u2026 The film\u2019s message is that love makes people do crazy things, and one should never take something for granted.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4949,15],"tags":[871,915,5852,5908,8922,8930,8924,5843,8928,8931,903,8934,8925,8921,8929,6232,8926,8927,8933,8935,4908,8923,1201,1243,8932],"class_list":["post-13434","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-feature-film","category-feature-film-reviews","tag-adrian-martinez","tag-caitriona-balfe","tag-dan-wilson","tag-danny-sapani","tag-evan-milton","tag-gary-spinelli","tag-holt-mccallany","tag-hutch-parker","tag-james-hawes","tag-joel-b-michaels","tag-jon-bernthal","tag-jonathan-amos","tag-joseph-millson","tag-julianne-nicholson","tag-ken-nolan","tag-laurence-fishburne","tag-marc-rissmann","tag-marthe-keller","tag-martin-ruhe","tag-martin-ware","tag-michael-stuhlbarg","tag-nick-mills","tag-rachel-brosnahan","tag-rami-malek","tag-volker-bertelmann"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paS5I2-3uG","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13434","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13434"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13434\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13443,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13434\/revisions\/13443"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13434"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13434"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kidsfirst.org\/kidsfirstnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13434"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}