• Home
  • Longform
    • Defanging the Unthinkable
      more
      View more

      Defanging the Unthinkable

      6 years ago
    • A Fitting, Impressive Goodbye
      more
      View more

      A Fitting, Impressive Goodbye

      6 years ago
    • The Ambivalent, Bittersweet "My Life as a Zucchini"
      more
      View more

      The Ambivalent, Bittersweet "My Life as a Zucchini"

      6 years ago
    • The Complex Morality of "No Country for Old Men"
      more
      View more

      The Complex Morality of "No Country for Old Men"

      6 years ago
  • Interviews
    • A New Way of Telling Love Stories
      more
      View more

      A New Way of Telling Love Stories

      6 years ago
    • Breaking Standards with Julian Rosefeldt of "Manifesto"
      more
      View more

      Breaking Standards with Julian Rosefeldt of "Manifesto"

      6 years ago
    • Indulging Mightily with Alex Ross Perry and the "Golden Exits" Cast
      more
      View more

      Indulging Mightily with Alex Ross Perry and the "Golden Exits" Cast

      6 years ago
    • The Ultimate Meta-Performance: Kate Lyn Sheil on "Kate Plays Christine"
      more
      View more

      The Ultimate Meta-Performance: Kate Lyn Sheil on "Kate Plays Christine"

      6 years ago
  • Critic-At-Large
    • Now Playing: "From Nowhere"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "From Nowhere"

      6 years ago
    • Now Playing: "Fifty Shades Darker"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "Fifty Shades Darker"

      6 years ago
    • Now Playing: "War on Everyone"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "War on Everyone"

      6 years ago
    • Now Playing: "The Salesman"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "The Salesman"

      6 years ago
  • Podcast
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 287: "Kundun"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 287: "Kundun"

      6 years ago
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 286: "Pinocchio"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 286: "Pinocchio"

      6 years ago
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 285: "That Darn Cat"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 285: "That Darn Cat"

      6 years ago
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 284: "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 284: "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement"

      6 years ago
Movie Mezzanine
  • Home
  • Longform
    • Defanging the Unthinkable
      more
      View more

      Defanging the Unthinkable

      6 years ago
    • A Fitting, Impressive Goodbye
      more
      View more

      A Fitting, Impressive Goodbye

      6 years ago
    • The Ambivalent, Bittersweet "My Life as a Zucchini"
      more
      View more

      The Ambivalent, Bittersweet "My Life as a Zucchini"

      6 years ago
    • The Complex Morality of "No Country for Old Men"
      more
      View more

      The Complex Morality of "No Country for Old Men"

      6 years ago
  • Interviews
    • A New Way of Telling Love Stories
      more
      View more

      A New Way of Telling Love Stories

      6 years ago
    • Breaking Standards with Julian Rosefeldt of "Manifesto"
      more
      View more

      Breaking Standards with Julian Rosefeldt of "Manifesto"

      6 years ago
    • Indulging Mightily with Alex Ross Perry and the "Golden Exits" Cast
      more
      View more

      Indulging Mightily with Alex Ross Perry and the "Golden Exits" Cast

      6 years ago
    • The Ultimate Meta-Performance: Kate Lyn Sheil on "Kate Plays Christine"
      more
      View more

      The Ultimate Meta-Performance: Kate Lyn Sheil on "Kate Plays Christine"

      6 years ago
  • Critic-At-Large
    • Now Playing: "From Nowhere"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "From Nowhere"

      6 years ago
    • Now Playing: "Fifty Shades Darker"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "Fifty Shades Darker"

      6 years ago
    • Now Playing: "War on Everyone"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "War on Everyone"

      6 years ago
    • Now Playing: "The Salesman"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "The Salesman"

      6 years ago
  • Podcast
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 287: "Kundun"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 287: "Kundun"

      6 years ago
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 286: "Pinocchio"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 286: "Pinocchio"

      6 years ago
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 285: "That Darn Cat"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 285: "That Darn Cat"

      6 years ago
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 284: "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 284: "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement"

      6 years ago
  • Home
  • Longform
    • Defanging the Unthinkable
      more
      View more

      Defanging the Unthinkable

      6 years ago
    • A Fitting, Impressive Goodbye
      more
      View more

      A Fitting, Impressive Goodbye

      6 years ago
    • The Ambivalent, Bittersweet "My Life as a Zucchini"
      more
      View more

      The Ambivalent, Bittersweet "My Life as a Zucchini"

      6 years ago
    • The Complex Morality of "No Country for Old Men"
      more
      View more

      The Complex Morality of "No Country for Old Men"

      6 years ago
  • Interviews
    • A New Way of Telling Love Stories
      more
      View more

      A New Way of Telling Love Stories

      6 years ago
    • Breaking Standards with Julian Rosefeldt of "Manifesto"
      more
      View more

      Breaking Standards with Julian Rosefeldt of "Manifesto"

      6 years ago
    • Indulging Mightily with Alex Ross Perry and the "Golden Exits" Cast
      more
      View more

      Indulging Mightily with Alex Ross Perry and the "Golden Exits" Cast

      6 years ago
    • The Ultimate Meta-Performance: Kate Lyn Sheil on "Kate Plays Christine"
      more
      View more

      The Ultimate Meta-Performance: Kate Lyn Sheil on "Kate Plays Christine"

      6 years ago
  • Critic-At-Large
    • Now Playing: "From Nowhere"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "From Nowhere"

      6 years ago
    • Now Playing: "Fifty Shades Darker"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "Fifty Shades Darker"

      6 years ago
    • Now Playing: "War on Everyone"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "War on Everyone"

      6 years ago
    • Now Playing: "The Salesman"
      more
      View more

      Now Playing: "The Salesman"

      6 years ago
  • Podcast
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 287: "Kundun"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 287: "Kundun"

      6 years ago
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 286: "Pinocchio"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 286: "Pinocchio"

      6 years ago
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 285: "That Darn Cat"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 285: "That Darn Cat"

      6 years ago
    • Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 284: "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement"
      more
      View more

      Mousterpiece Cinema, Episode 284: "The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement"

      6 years ago
‘White House Down’ is Quality Summer Trash
  • Reviews

‘White House Down’ is Quality Summer Trash

  • by Sam Fragoso
  • June 29, 2013
  • 0
  • 1949

Movies are so rarely great art that if we cannot appreciate great trash we have very little reason to be interested in them. – Pauline Kael

The above quote from endlessly influential film critic Pauline Kael perfectly summates White House Down, Roland Emmerich’s latest exercise in sprawling, brain-cell-killing, campy action/comedy filmmaking that is, without reservation, great trash to be enjoyed. Such ceaselessly entertaining “trash” doesn’t come around as often as it should. Give credit to screenwriter James Vanderbilt (responsible for penning Zodiac, The Amazing Spider-Man, and more) who harmoniously crafts a downright silly, uproarious trifle that plays like Die Hard in the White House.

Instead of the heroic John McClane (Bruce Willis) we have Cale (Channing Tatum), a D.C. cop looking to work for the Secret Service and better his relationship with his teenage daughter Emily (Joey King), a precocious, gleefully patriotic YouTube blogger who insists on calling her father by his first name. After his job interview, the two embark on a White House tours. Fun is had by all until the sound of gunshots begin.

Soon, the President’s palace is overrun by methodical homegrown terrorists, killing every security guard in sight and holding each participant of the tour hostage. Cale manages to break free, determined to find his daughter and protect President Sawyer (Jamie Foxx) from danger. The terrorist’s grand demand? $400 million dollars in cash and a plane to flee the country.

The plot grows more and more ludicrous as time goes on. From the waving of an American flag in the White house north lawn to an ominous subplot involving James Woods to the President kicking someone’s head in after a terrorist attempted to touch his Jordans, White House Down manages to reinvent the term “asinine behavior.” More asinine though is the film’s facile attempt to make any sort contribution to the discussion of contemporary politics. Sawyer, a clearly defined liberal, decries our handling of foreign affairs and the mass amounts of money we spend on warfare, proposing we must seek and obtain peace with everyone. While Emmerich’s rose-colored socio-political eulogies may be valid, they’re sorely misplaced in this exploitative romp.

Thankfully the film’s primal focus is not preaching politics, but entertaining its audience. Cale and Sawyer crack-wise as they evade (and occasionally take out) enemies roaming around the Executive mansion, while Emily covertly captures (with her cell phone) the madness transpiring inside. The action sequences are cogently designed, neither flashy nor dizzying. But what fuels the movie is its sense of humor. Foxx and Tatum imbue the film with enough wit and charm to withstand most of the corny and cliched elements lining the film’s 131-minute runtime.

Aside from the occasional didactic hiccup, White House Down doesn’t take itself so unflinchingly serious — unlike Olympus Has Fallen, a film released three months ago with a similar premise. While the action in the former film may have been more thrilling (not to mention more graphic) Emmerich’s twisted vision of a country on the verge of destruction is the more absorbing piece of work.

Grade: B

  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0
  • 0

Related posts

  • Odienator
1
Looking for Solutions <br>in “Where to Invade Next”

Looking for Solutions
in “Where to Invade Next”

7 years ago
  • KTurner
0
Exploring Past and Present <br> in “45 Years”

Exploring Past and Present
in “45 Years”

7 years ago
  • DanSc
0
“Finders Keepers”: A Cult Classic in the Making

“Finders Keepers”: A Cult Classic in the Making

7 years ago

5 thoughts on “‘White House Down’ is Quality Summer Trash”

  1. Colin Biggs on July 2, 2013 at 12:35 AM said:

    I imagine once audiences find out who the groups behind the attacks are, the attendance numbers will go down pretty quickly. A shame considering this was going to be Channing Tatum’s break out for mainstream audiences.

    • Sam Fragoso on July 2, 2013 at 3:59 AM said:

      I’m convinced Tatum has already broken out and seeped into the public consciousness.

      Have you seen the movie?

      • Colin Biggs on July 2, 2013 at 10:10 AM said:

        I haven’t, but a friend breathlessly told me the ending after he saw it.

        • Colin Biggs on July 2, 2013 at 9:30 PM said:

          The part of California he was in, he said the audience turned on the film very quickly. I’m curious if other audiences responded similarly.

          • Sam Fragoso on July 3, 2013 at 1:26 AM said:

            I remember my audience doing no such thing. That’s quite strange.

About Us

Movie Mezzanine is an online publication dedicated to covering the medium that connects us all, one film at a time. With writers stationed around the globe, we offer a uniquely diverse perspective on cinema, both old and new. To learn more about us, go here.

Spotlight

Putting the Geek to the Plow

Cleantalk Pixel