Roger Ebert Praised Brendan Fraser's Performance In A Forgotten Political Thriller

Brendan Fraser has mounted an impressive comeback in recent years that has seen the talented actor receive the due he's always deserved. With news that Fraser and Rachel Weisz will now return for "The Mummy 4," his re-ascendence is solidified. As such, now is a great time to look back at some overlooked entries in the actor's filmography that, like the star himself, deserve more attention, and "The Quiet American" is the perfect example.

This 2002 political drama is directed by Phillip Noyce, the Australian filmmaker who also gave us 1997's Val Kilmer-led "The Saint," the Angelina Jolie-starring "Salt," and two Jack Ryan adaptations in 1992's "Patriot Games" and 1994's "Clear and Present Danger." Put simply, then, the man knew his way around a political thriller by the time he came to direct this adaptation of Graham Greene's 1955 novel of the same name.

"The Quiet American" was adapted by Christopher Hampton and Robert Schenkkan, and stars Fraser as a young American doctor who finds himself in a love triangle with a beautiful Vietnamese woman played by Do Thi Hai Yen and an older British reporter played by Michael Caine (they both want the girl, this isn't a Fraser/Caine love story). But this isn't a simple romantic drama, as "The Quiet American" takes place in 1952 Saigon and has a lot to say about American involvement in the First Indochina War — none of it all that positive. Someone who did have a lot of positive things to say, however, was Roger Ebert, who, like many other critics, absolutely loved this movie — particularly Fraser's performance — and ultimately bestowed a perfect score upon it.

"The Quiet American" is one of Brendan Fraser's best movies, but it's not just Fraser that makes it such a triumph. The film sees Michael Caine's love-starved aging British journalist Thomas Fowler reporting on the First Indochina War in Vietnam, which saw the French battle Communist-led Viet Minh rebels. Since reporting on the conflict, Fowler has fallen for a Vietnamese girl whom he pays to be his mistress. Phuong (Do Thi Hai Yen) is several decades younger than Fowler, but the foreign correspondent is convinced their love is real. Meanwhile, the CIA sends Brendan Fraser's Alden Pyle to pose as an aid worker to surreptitiously carry out operations that will tilt the war in America's favor and ultimately provide the ideal grounds for U.S. involvement in the conflict.

Unfortunately for Fowler, Pyle soon takes a liking to Phuong and attempts to steal her away with promises of marriage and a life of comfort. Naturally, Caine's aging journo doesn't take too kindly to Pyle's advances, so he reveals to the Communists that the American has armed the splinter group responsible for a series of terrorist bombings in Saigon, which killed several innocent people.

All of that seemed to impress Roger Ebert greatly, as the critic gave the film a perfect review, praising pretty much every aspect of the thing, from its direction to the script's fidelity to the original novel. Ebert, who passed away in 2013 at the age of 70, also noted how Fraser was finally showcasing his full talents in the movie, after too often starring as a "walking cartoon" in previous efforts.

"The Quiet American" was the second adaptation of the original novel. A 1958 version removed all the criticism of America's surreptitious involvement in the First Indochina War, but the 2002 film added all of it back in. It was initially supposed to debut in 2001, but after 9/11, Miramax decided to shelve "The Quiet American" due to the aforementioned critique of the United States. The film finally debuted at the 2002 Toronto Film Festival and was given an Oscar qualification release later that year, ahead of a limited release in January 2003, where it brought in $12.9 million domestically.

Michael Caine earned a Best Actor Academy Award nomination, but for Roger Ebert, Caine was just one part of an extremely impressive whole. The critic complimented Fraser, who, in the reviewer's estimation, "often stars as a walking cartoon" in reference to his films "Dudley Do-Right" and "George of the Jungle." As Ebert saw it, Fraser had demonstrated that he was a "gifted actor" in other films, but in "The Quiet American," he "finds just the right balance between confidence and blindness: What he does is evil, but he is convinced it is good, and has a simple, sunny view that maddens an old hand like Fowler." Ultimately, Ebert applauded Phillip Noyce for presenting a "world view more mature and knowing than the simplistic pieties that provide the public face of foreign policy."

The film was well-received elsewhere, too, and currently enjoys an 87% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes. So, if you want to watch this under-seen political drama with a ringing Ebert endorsement, you can see "The Quiet American" for free over on Pluto, which is catching up to fellow free-streamer Tubi as one of the best streaming services.