END GAME

REVIEWED BY CHARITY BISHOP

Our rating: 4 out of 5

Because of: language, thematic elements

Rated:

Shelved before its theatrical release due to a merger between two separate film companies, End Game surprised me with how marketable it is. A classic tale of espionage and intrigue that probably could have given The Sentinel a run for its box-office bucks, the fact that it is mildly predictable is undercut with fantastic action sequences and decent performances. Best of all, I really have no idea how it managed to gain an R-rating.

Smiling faces gather against the police barricade to wave to the president as he passes by. Squeezing his wife's hand, the President (Jack Scalia) steps out into the street, surrounded by the secret service. Shots are fired. One penetrates the hand of his good friend and bodyguard (Cuba Gooding Jr.) before slamming into the president's head. The next several hours are a whirlwind of anxiety as attempts to operate prove unsuccessful, and a nation goes into mourning. One of the reporters on the scene, Kate Crawford (Angie Harmon) believes the shooting could not have been carried out alone. Seeking the assistance of a homeless man in the area, she discerns where the shooter lived in the days prior to his assassination attempt and subsequent death. Evidence supports the belief that he was dying of lung cancer.

Her investigation has repercussions, as the people she gains interviews with become increasingly unavailable or downright dead. Alex, in the meantime, has taken the president's death hard and initially resists Kate's attempts to involve him in her investigation. But once convinced they are both a target in a much bigger scheme, he has no choice but get to the bottom of it. The formula is very practicable, ironically enough paralleling some aspects of The Enemy Within, an HBO project starring Sam Waterston, Angie's costar from the Law & Order franchise. But it is well crafted and holds enough excitement to get the blood pumping. Some of its finest moments include underwater struggles, and a madman threatening a bus full of school children.

It was nice to see such a marvelous cast drawn together for a big-budget project. Harmon was very effective in the role of a reporter who sometimes sticks her nose where it doesn't belong, but isn't so independent that she manages to get herself killed. Gooding makes a good guilt-wracked hero, and Anne Archer makes quite an appearance as the president's wife. Little nuances of the story unfold over time, and the filmmaking itself is quite ingenious, never showing us more than is needed to paint the image in our mind. I was surprised with not only how clean it was, but the fact that it still managed to get an R-rating. There is one f-word and two other uses of Jesus' name; other profanities can be counted on one hand. Nothing sexual transpires, although it is implied that the president's chief bodyguard frequently steps out on his wife. There's a shot of one of his girlfriends from behind that is a little risqué.

Violence is intense but not gruesome. Many men are shot and killed in an exchange of gunfire; one man catches fire and is badly burned, screaming and running about until Alex puts out the flames. Explosions wrack buildings and boats. A woman is beat about the head and thrown into pieces of furniture. A man drowns. The ending was a little predictable simply because I am so accustomed to watching these kinds of films. Another conclusion could have been reached with a bit more planning, but still it doesn't prevent End Game from being a decent and surprisingly clean political thriller. Conservative filmmakers must have been in charge of this one, because it's problems are few and far between.