‘The 15:17 to Paris’ is boring slog of a film that never leaves the station

Posted on February 16, 2018

By MARK VIOLA

On Aug. 21, 2015, a terrorist attempted to shoot his way through a loaded train crossing the European countryside on its way to Paris, France. His attack was thwarted, however, when a number of people managed to subdue and restrain him after he shot one person. Among those men were U.S. military members Spencer Stone and Alek Skarlatos, along with their civilian friend Anthony Sadler.

All three men become instant heroes, both in France and the United States. Since then, a book was written about their lives, and now we have “The 15:17 to Paris,” a film telling that same story from director Clint Eastwood, starring Stone, Skarlatos and Sadler as themselves.

I have a lot of respect for these three men, as well as the others who helped on the train that day, so I wish I could tell you that the film depicting their story on the big screen was actually a good one. Sadly, I cannot, for “The 15:17 to Paris” is not only poorly acted and poorly developed, it is also one of the most boring movies I’ve ever seen.

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