I saw the poster and I wanted in. I didn't know what it was about or why I hadn't heard about it, but the striking black stencil of George Clooney mid-stride against an orange background compelled me. I saw the trailer, and we seemed set up for a fast-paced secret agent movie. Still not turned off. But there was something else about it that wasn't obvious from the clip… And then I heard it was coming to the Brisbane International Film Festival. I just had to find out what it was that drew me in.

George Clooney plays the title role, a wiry, ageing master gunsmith coming toward the end of his career. He seems to be tired of the endless chase, and the attempts on his own life that come with it. He liaises with a contact (Johan Leysenwho advises him to travel to a small Italian hamlet to cover his tracks and lose the contractors out for his life. His liaison offers him a job whilst in the town, and we witness The American in his element - creating highly specialised custom assassins' instruments. The old dog becomes distracted though, and perhaps flirts with danger all too readily by establishing relationships with the town's priest (Paolo Bonacelli) and a local girl (the enigmatic Violante Placido). And there's something about this job that just doesn't feel right.

Something I truly enjoyed about this film was its pace. In direct contrast to what the trailer would have you believe this is a very patient, quiet and metered film, and contrary to what you'd then assume, these factors served to accentuate the punctuated bursts of speed and violence rather than slow it.

The movie wasn't plot-heavy either, playing more like a cinematic short story than the seven-book epics we're becoming accustomed to. This homage to Seventies minimalist cinema reminds us that you don't have to pack a film to the hilt with action, explosions, babes, guns, twists and turns and four sex scenes for it to be a hitman or secret agent movie. Arguably, you can add as much to a film with a telling glance expertly framed as a hundred-thousand dollar pyrotechnics display. Perhaps more importantly the patience, the waiting and the relationships are factors integral to a person's survival when thrust into these situations.

If you want a palette-cleansing, well-crafted, atmospheric film where a small ensemble of actors create a compelling, if simple, story, The American hits the mark. If you wanted the high-pace thriller suggested by the trailer (as some other reviewers seem to have wanted!) then you should probably raid your old Jason Bourne collection.