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White House Down (2013)
White House Down (2013)
I expected White House Down to be basically the same movie as Olympus Has Fallen (2013). Besides the actors, almost everything about each film looked very similar. It is very weird to me that two movies that are so much alike would be released the same year and so close to one another. For some reason I got it in my mind that White House Down was going to be the ugly cousin of Olympus Has Fallen.
White House Down follows a former military man (Channing Tatum) who brings his daughter with him to the White House where he managed to get a job interview to try to become a Secret Service Agent. He brings his daughter along with him to the White House because she is a huge fan of the President (Jamie Foxx). While there, they decide to take a tour. During the tour the White House is attacked and the man does what he can to protect his daughter and the President.
The film was directed by Roland Emmerich and the rest of the noteworthy cast includes Maggie Gyllenhaal, James Woods, Jason Clarke, Richard Jenkins, Joey King, Nicolas Wright, Jimmi Simpson, Michael Murphy, Rachelle Lefevre, Lance Reddick, Matt Craven, and Kevin Rankin.
This movie surprised me. It exceeded my expectations. I liked it a little bit better than Olympus Has Fallen. It was not quite as predictable as Olympus Has Fallen and I felt that the actors did a better job. Also, it seemed like White House Down had fewer flaws than Olympus Has Fallen.
The film was intense and exciting. The attack on the White House was eerily realistic. There was a lot of good action. As with most action movies, some of the action was a bit unbelievable at times. But, for the most part, this didn’t take away from the film.
Tatum was likable as he usually is. Foxx was better than I thought he would be as the President. When the two teamed up together, they were both pretty entertaining and even funny at times.
The rest of the actors played their parts well. Besides Tatum and Foxx, Woods and Jenkins stood out above the rest.
Overall, White House Down is a fun ride worth taking.
I rate this movie an 8 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Buy.
If you liked White House Down (2013), then you will probably enjoy the following movies:
Olympus Has Fallen (2013)
Olympus Has Fallen (2013)
Olympus Has Fallen fell short slightly of my expectations. A few events that took place in the film were so unrealistic that is took away from my suspension of disbelief. Parts of the movie were pretty predictable and other parts were almost laughably over the top. With all of that being said, it was an action movie and most action movies have at least a couple of scenes that are a bit much and a little hard to believe. It is all meant to entertain and this movie is filled with enough action that it does just that.
Antoine Fuqua is known for directing very raw and darkly intense films with good casts and Olympus Has Fallen falls in that category.
After the White House is overrun by terrorists and the President (Aaron Eckhart) is taken hostage, an ex-secret service agent (Gerard Butler) does all that he can to try to get the President back alive and help to retake the White House.
This is Gerard Butler’s best movie since Law Abiding Citizen (2009).
Aaron Eckhart gives a pretty decent performance as per usual.
Besides The Campaign (2012), I have not seen Dylan McDermott in anything good for a very long time, so his role in this film was pretty refreshing.
I have also not seen Ashley Judd in anything for a long time, so it was nice to see her in this movie.
Morgan Freeman has looked very old for a long time, but in this film he really looks ancient. He seems so old that his character is almost unrealistic. I have noticed that he is popping up in everything lately. It’s almost like he is trying to go out with a bang.
Rounding out the rest of the solid cast is Rick Yune, Angela Bassett, Melissa Leo, Radha Mitchell, Cole Hauser, and Robert Forster.
Overall, the movie is enjoyable and worth seeing. If you want to see something that is action-packed throughout, then Olympus Has Fallen will fill the bill.
I rate this movie a 7.5 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Rent.
If you liked Olympus Has Fallen (2013), then you will most likely enjoy White House Down (2013).
Trailer for Olympus Has Fallen (2013)
Olympus Has Fallen (2013) (click on the title to read my full review)
Antoine Fuqua has a tendency to make very gritty, powerful films. Having directed such films as Training Day (2001), Shooter (2007), Tears of the Sun (2003), and Brooklyn’s Finest (2009), this film appears like it is going to follow in the footsteps of its predecessors. With a cast that includes Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman, Dylan McDermott, Melissa Leo, Ashley Judd, Angela Bassett, and Fuqua directing, it would be hard for the movie to be bad. It definitely looks promising.
The film is set to release on 3/22/13 and I will most likely be in the theatre shortly after that.
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