End Game

I argued with myself whether to rent this or not. I'm always afraid of renting something I've never heard of (don't remember this being in theaters). Great cast...that's what tipped the scales. 30 minutes in, I almost stopped watching it. The first few minutes are fun to watch, but unbelievable. It only gets worse after that. The writers of this movie could do a little research on future projects if they want to make their movies even a little better. Or they could just try writing something just a little bit believable. I give it a 3....a 1 for the writing (only because there are words)and a 2 for being able to get so many good actors to agree to do this movie despite having to read the script. Oh my god this movie sucks.

After secret service agent Alex Thomas (Cuba Gooding Jr) gets shot trying to protect the President of the United States who's assassinated the question becomes who hired the dead shooter and why in this fairly average action thriller. The bottom line is they assembled a decent cast and a respectful budget to swim thru poor writing and cliches by the boatload.

Angie Harmon is the reporter who digs into the events, won't let things go and teams up with the secret service agent in pursuit of the truth. When everyone she talks to gets killed you know the direction we're heading in. By the time a bunch of mercs try to kill them both the writing is on the wall. The story is so routine, predictable to a fault that it's very easy to follow.

At first glance, there seems to be a lot to like. The film is shot well, polished and acted by a cast of recognizable faces. James Woods, Anne Archer, Peter Greene, Jack Scalia, Burt Reynolds and Benito Martinez all appear in supporting roles. However factor in the story that barely holds your attention and an ending, payoff that is massively underwhelming and you see why the cast alone can't salvage this tale.

We've had plenty of films explore presidential assassination before. I've seen others explore secret service members undivided loyalty to the President. Clint Eastwood's 'Absolute Power' comes to mind. The well worn issue of infidelity. 'End Game' goes thru the paces and pays the price ultimately not being very memorable or worthy of even a lazy Sunday afternoon viewing.

i guess its possible that I've seen worse movies, but this one is a real stinker! the plot is unremarkable but thats not the worst of it. the directing is no where close to what you would expect from andy ching. he's capable of good work but failed to pull this movie together.

angie harmon, playing the female lead as a reporter dogging into who's behind the assassination of the president, truly butchered the role. there was no chemistry with gooding, her demeanor was flat and wooden, and the 5 inch spike heels she wore throughout the movie were absurd. this outing for harmon places her solidly at the bottom of the "b" list.

and what was cuba gooding thinking??? he has to his credit a number of outstanding performances, but this was far beneath what we've come to expect from him.

poor james woods and burt reynolds. poor poor poor poor poor.

Predictable, hackneyed & poorly written. Foolishly I reasoned such a prominent cast would not be involved unless it had merit. I guess competition amongst actors is so intense these days (and will only get worse) that one cannot pick and choose much any more. Early on we were given an inkling who was was instrumental in the assassination and we had it rammed down our throats ever since. The movie lacked intrigue, giving us little insight into the victim and only one possible motive for the murder. Some of the discourse was, frankly, embarrassing! It's hard to believe anyone would even consider, let alone commit to, the spending of tens of millions of dollars to make this tripe.

This film premiered at the Ft. Lauderdale Film Festival and then dropped out of sight, not opening in theaters, but going straight to video. Probably a wise choice. It is good enough for video and TV, but not quite good enough for the screen. It just doesn't have that something extra to make it a great film, but it is not a total waste of time, either.

I have to admit that I tuned in to see Christa Campbell, who plays the President's mistress. I didn't get to see anything more than her lips talking into the telephone. Big disappointment, but hey, it's Christa. It will keep me satisfied until my copy of Death By Engagement arrives.

It is the first I have seen of Cuba Gooding, Jr. in a long time, and he did a good job. Plenty of action as he goes after those responsible for the assignation of the President. Angie Harmon, one of the best Assistant DAs on Law and Order, was great as his partner in solving the mystery of who killed the President. Certainly an interesting twist to the usual assignation plot.

Always like seeing Anne Archer, and she was classy as a First lady. James Woods and Burt Reynolds had small but interesting parts.