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| Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx |
Emmerich is back with another mindless action thriller in "White House Down"
2013 is blessed with not one, but two action thrillers with the White House in physical distress, the first being spring's "Olympus Has Fallen" and now "White House Down" from "Independence Day" director "Independence Day," who must have a thing for exploding Presidential mansions. Mindless, preposterous fun, it's best to just to sit back, enjoy and not actually think about the details of "White House Down." A group of domestic terrorists and mercenaries led by Emil Stenz (Jason Clarke of "Zero Dark Thirty") overtake the White House, threaten to kill the President (Jamie Foxx) and destroy mankind with nuclear bombs, but not before US Capitol Police officer John Kale (Channing Tatum) can get to them. Also starring James Woods as a bad Secret Service agent, Maggie Gyllenhaal a good Secret Service agent and Richard Jenkins as the Speaker of the House, "White House Down" is essentially another version of "Olympus" with similar plot points and characters, and much like that film, it's ridiculous, over-the-top and dumbed down considerably, and (unsurprisingly) director Emmerich and "The Amazing Spider-Man" writer James Vanderbilt wouldn't have it any other way. With a large bucket of popcorn and some Milk Duds, "White House Down" can be enjoyable, if not, exhausting, entertainment that the summer tends to bring out, and Tatum and Foxx seem to be the perfect pairing for something like this, with Foxx's mugging for the camera and Tatum's athleticism. Too bad a smart actress like Gyllenhaal is given little to do, but Woods' chomping on scenery at every turn is actually pretty fun to watch (and he's always a terrific bad guy). Lots of explosions, shooting, running, beating up people and destroying endless amounts of White House accessories takes time, and on that note it grows tiresome after awhile. Emmerich has assembled a great cast, some nice action set pieces and an otherwise forgettable piece of nonsense in "White House Down," which means it will likely be a decent hit at the box-office. Fun, but leave your brain at the door.
Wes's Grade: C
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