I've been watching a string of disappointing movies, from The Lone Ranger to the two Grown Ups films and G.I. Joe Retaliation and even Man of Steel, so when it came to White House Down, I was desperately hoping for something I'd enjoy. Thankfully, that was just the case. It's time for another REVIEWPOINT as we break down the action film's hits and misses.
NOTE: SPOILERS BELOW. IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE MOVIE AND DO NOT WANT TO KNOW DETAILS, SKIP THIS AND COME BACK LATER
As always, let's start with the bad news first.
THE MISSES
1. EMILY CALE
One of the main plot points of this film is that John Cale's daughter, Emily, is amongst those held captive at the White House. I'm virtually never a fan of kids in movies and television shows, as they're typically written to be obnoxious little brats that can save the day despite how for most of the story, they're complete idiots. This is no exception. Emily is bitchy to her father who is doing the best he can and a total dork. I know why she's in the film as far as structurally, but every scene with her made me wish it would end so we could get back to the entertaining things.
2. THE MOTHER
I see why Emily is the way she is. Her mother is annoying as well.
THE HITS
1. TATUM AND FOXX
These two work extremely well together. In buddy films, this is an absolute must, and there's no flaw on this side of White House Down. I'd like to see the two of them work on another film in the future....possibly White House Down 2?
2. THE HUMOR
When you can get me to legitimately laugh out loud at something that you've put there to be intentionally funny, I naturally have to give props. Nothing is worse than when a film is trying to be funny and wants to beat you over the head with something in the hopes that you laugh, but nothing is better than when it just simply does its job and actually IS funny when intended.
3. THE ACTION
Of course, the focal point of this film is the action, and this delivers throughout. There are instances where the fighting is pretty gritty and realistic, but then there are other times when the gloves are off and it's time to just have some fun. Sometimes, you need that break where you can watch the President of the United States drive around in a limo with a rocket launcher on the White House lawn.
4. VILLAIN MOTIVE
A lot of action films take the cheap way out. This could have easily been about terrorists just trying to kill the President or about a ransom, but instead, each and every villain was given a motive that would fit them. Whether it be glory, revenge, politics, the aforementioned money, things lined up nicely when you find out just how these people from opposite ends of the spectrum got together to concoct such a plot.
5. DONNIE THE TOUR GUIDE
He was the man. I would have liked more scenes with him, as ridiculous as he was.
END NOTES
Is this going to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards? By no means. However, this is exactly the type of film that it claims to be. It's fun, entertaining, popcorn escapism and exactly what movies need to be once in a while. If everything was doom and gloom with people wailing about their emotions, life would suck, wouldn't it? But the key factor here is that this did not fall under the traps that most other films do. Many movies—particularly under the action, horror, and comedy genres—get so swept up in being the opposite that they just turn out to be garbage. They have random explosions, no real plot, horrible acting (and so on and so forth). White House Down is able to fire on all cylinders and come out as a breath of fresh air.
Would I recommend it? Absolutely, especially if you're in the mood to just sit back and watch some action. Just stay away if you're the type of person that only likes indie films, foreign films, or anything else with a pretentious attitude.
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