American Made

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2:27

American Made

R

2017

1h 55m

Comedy

Drama

Adventure

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

85%

Tomatometer

267 Reviews

79%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

Barry Seal, a TWA pilot, is recruited by the CIA to provide reconnaissance on the burgeoning communist threat in Central America and soon finds himself in charge of one of the biggest covert CIA operations in the history of the United States. The operation spawns the birth of the Medellín cartel and almost brings down the Reagan White House.

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Critics Consensus

American Made's fast-and-loose attitude with its real-life story mirrors the cavalier -- and delightfully watchable -- energy Tom Cruise gives off in the leading role.

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David Sims

The Atlantic

10/13/2017

But by the time the movie roared to its shockingly grim, remarkably embittered ending, American Made had won me over.

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Katie Walsh

Tribune News Service

10/07/2017

It skitters and jumps, shivers and boot-scoots, never, ever sitting still. You could say it's like "Blow," on well, blow. But there's a breezy sunniness to this film, which looks like a faded snapshot reclaimed from an '80s photo album.

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J. R. Jones

Chicago Reader

10/05/2017

One assumes that Cruise got this film made, yet he's a terrible fit for the role: he's always done his best work portraying smart, insightful characters in dramatic stories, but Seal was a yahoo whose sorry escapades are played here for cynical laughs.

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Colin Biggs

Vague Visages

12/01/2023

American Made might push Cruise further along his evolution to more interesting, character-based roles. One doesn’t expect an immediate return to iconic roles like Vincent Lauria or T.J. Mackey, but hopefully Barry Seal is just the start.

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Don Shanahan

Every Movie Has a Lesson

06/26/2022

4/5

"American Made" is southern-fried Scorsese Lite, a gumbo of decadent deviance masking over a sharp spice of potentially fatal risks.

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

03/17/2022

2.5/4

Regardless of its exciting story and sharp ending, the film contains almost no lasting consequence and feels more like an adventure than the story of a real-world scandal, rather troublingly so.

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Antony B

@RT29664284 Jul 26

American Made flies with the confidence of a great bar story, wild enough to make you question it, grounded enough to make you believe every word. Tom Cruise is magnetic, turning Barry Seal into a guy who's always one reckless choice away from disaster and somehow smiling through all of them. The film races from one impossible situation to the next with sharp humor and effortless style, but what lingers is the quiet sadness beneath the adrenaline. It's a reminder that chasing the next big score is easy; knowing when you've already won is the hard part.

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Craig H

@ToxicZombi Jul 25

From TWA pilot to CIA aerial photographer to drug and gun runner, Tom Cruise appeared to be having fun, as he usually does in this emminently enjoyable and fast moving film.

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Vik D

@vikdamone Jul 17

American Made feels like someone kept saying, "It can't possibly get crazier," and the movie took that as a personal challenge. Tom Cruise is all charm and bad decisions, sprinting through one unbelievable mess after another with a grin that somehow makes it work. It's funny, fast, and the kind of wild true story that makes fiction seem lazy.

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Dom D.

@dom15 Jun 16

Sorry kept you on your toes. Great stunts and actors.

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dave E

@caseyeisenman May 26

I loved this movie and it's based on a true story. Cruise is excellent as always, the scenery is great, the acting is 100% and i've seen it a few times over the years.

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Meri S.

@mschroeder May 7

Very good movie and one I’d never heard about. Kept me intrigued throughout.

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Doug Liman

Director

Tom Cruise

Barry Seal

Domhnall Gleeson

Monty "Schafer"

Sarah Wright

Lucy Seal

Jesse Plemons

Sheriff Downing

Caleb Landry Jones

JB

American Made: Official Clip - Pablo's Revenge

2:47

American Made: Official Clip - Barry Gets Burned

2:03

American Made: Official Clip - A Cadillac for Your Troubles

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American Made: Official Clip - Outflying the DEA

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American Made: Official Clip - Becoming a Drug Plane

4:26

American Made: Official Clip - Setting Up Escobar

3:00

American Made: Official Clip - Goodbye, JB

2:48

American Made: Official Clip - The Gringo Who Delivers

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American Made: Official Clip - Celebrating with Escobar

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American Made: Official Clip - Summer '82

2:14

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American Made: Behind the Scenes - Helicopters and Airplanes

1:25

American Made: Behind the Scenes - Who is Barry Seal?

1:18

American Made: Behind the Scenes - Really Unique

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American Made: Behind the Scenes - On the Front Lines

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American Made: Behind the Scenes - Outrageous Story

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American Made: Behind the Scenes - Pilot & Adventurer

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American Made: Behind the Scenes - Film School Bootcamp

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American Made: Behind the Scenes - Mena, Arkansas

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American Made: Behind the Scenes - Schafer in CIA Meeting

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American Made: B-Roll

5:28

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Synopsis

Barry Seal, a TWA pilot, is recruited by the CIA to provide reconnaissance on the burgeoning communist threat in Central America and soon finds himself in charge of one of the biggest covert CIA operations in the history of the United States. The operation spawns the birth of the Medellín cartel and almost brings down the Reagan White House.

Director: Doug Liman
Producer: Brian Grazer, Brian Oliver, Doug Davison, Kim Roth, Ray Angelic, Tyler Thompson
Screenwriter: Gary Spinelli
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Quadrant Pictures, Brian Grazer, Hercules Film Fund, Vendian Entertainment
Rating: R (Some Sexuality/Nudity|Language Throughout)
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Adventure
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 29, 2017, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 19, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $51.3M
Runtime: 1h 55m
Sound Mix: Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)