Review of White House Down (2013) by Joe W — 07 Jan 2016

Every now and again in Hollywood, we come across a situation in which movies are released within the same year (sometimes within months of each other) that have identical or near-identical storylines. I'm not talking about similar themes or scenarios or movies of the same type; I mean movies for which you see a trailer and think to yourself, "Didn't this movie come out like two months ago?" For example, 1998 gave us two movies in a two-month span that dealt with a giant asteroid speeding towards Earth ("Deep Impact" and "Armageddon"). A year later, we got two movies within a month that centered around ordinary people visited by spirits who want their help ("The Sixth Sense" and "Stir of Echoes"). Fast forward to 2013, and in a three-month period, we got "Olympus Has Fallen" and "White House Down," two action films about a terrorist attack on the White House.

Given the obvious similarities between the two, I did a little binge-watching and watched them back-to-back. Given what had been previously said about the two movies and how they had been received (as well as gauging the talent both in front of and behind the camera), I went into the movies expecting to come away liking "Olympus Has Fallen" better than "White House Down." I'm shocked to report that I was wrong; way wrong, in fact. Not only did I enjoy "White House Down" a lot more, but I would actually recommend seeing it, whereas I would not with "Olympus Has Fallen." To be clear, both movies are insanely implausible and blatant rip-offs of "Die Hard." But the major difference is that "White House Down" seems to be aware of this, while "Olympus Has Fallen" plays it straight. The finished products actually end up quite different; one is stupid and fun, while the other is stupid and pretentious.

"White House Down" was helmed by Roland Emmerich, the German filmmaker who previously destroyed the White House (along with other American monuments) in "Independence Day," New York City in "Godzilla," much of North America in "The Day After Tomorrow," and the entire world in "2012." Lots of things go bang and boom in "White House Down," but relatively speaking, it's pretty low-key by comparison. Emmerich will never be touted alongside Scorsese, Spielberg, or the Coen Brothers, but his films are never boring, and at the very least, he provides more-than-sufficient "popcorn" entertainment.

"White House Down" is actually one of his better efforts mainly because, as mentioned above, it does not take itself too seriously. Unlike "Olympus Has Fallen," which is so earnest that it seems like it wants you to believe that it's not a dumbed-down "Die Hard" clone, you get the sense that "White House Down" comes THIS close to actually mentioning that "Die Hard" exists. (There actually is a reference to "Independence Day," so clearly the characters in this universe watch movies.) It's as if Emmerich and his team of filmmakers know there's no chance of this sort of thing happening with the real world, so they just decide to have some fun with it. When compared to "Olympus," at least, it was the right tactic.

Channing Tatum plays John Cale, a D.C. cop who desperately wants to become a Secret Service agent, mostly to impress his teenage daughter, Emily (Joey King), who's very into politics and history and America and all that fun stuff. During a tour of the White House, armed mercenaries, who'd been posing as technicians and janitors and such (of course), stage a raid and kill the Secret Service agents and take the tour group hostage...all except for Cale, who has eluded them, and through a lucky set of circumstances, actually manages to locate and rescue President Sawyer (Jamie Foxx), and the two of them are now caught in a game of cat-and-mouse with the bad guys.

Now that right there should tell you that this movie is throwing caution and restraint to the wind. With a premise like this, should the President actually be actively involved in the proceedings? Hell yes, he should. "Independence Day" knew this. "Air Force One" knew this. "White House Down" knows this. If only "Olympus Has Fallen" had known...

Another thing that movie should've known is that the President should be an interesting character. In that film, the President was nothing more than a cardboard cut-out; "underdeveloped" doesn't even begin to describe him. Jamie Foxx's President Sawyer is determined, idealistic, and perhaps most importantly, a tad bit humorous. He cracks the occasional one-liner. He wears Air Jordans. He even fires a rocket launcher at the terrorists. In short, he has a personality.

I've commented in the past on how Channing Tatum's range is beyond limited, but this is the kind of role he can successfully play. Granted, he's not winning an Academy Award any time soon (but that's OK, as the film already utilizes the talents of one Oscar winner in Foxx and three nominees in Maggie Gyllenhaal, James Woods, and Richard Jenkins-see, "Olympus Has Fallen," this is how you use a cast stacked with Oscar winners/nominees!), and he doesn't fare so well with the instances of flippant dialogue and colorful banter. Bruce Willis, he is not (nor is John Cale John McClane, for that matter). But the meat of the role involves fighting, shooting, and yelling, and he's more than capable of doing this with aplomb.

What else? The movie involves a chase on the White House lawn in the Presidential sedan and a character setting fire to the Oval Office. A helicopter rotor slices through the roof of the building and nearly cleaves a character in two. One unlucky bad guy gets his head stuck to a group of live grenades. All of this is good stuff.

Look, I know this is insanely stupid. And there's a chance that my opinion may be a bit skewed watching this so soon after the dreary "Olympus." But hey, I had fun. And if you just got to watch a movie in which armed terrorists seize control of the White House, "White House Down" is the way to go. If nothing else, at least you can say Emmerich and his crew never half-ass it, and this is a prime example.