White House Down Right Predictable and Cheesy

   It will probably feel like you have seen this movie before and you may have. It has a lot of familiar things from some very big action movies. It's a little Lethal Weapon, Air Force One, and Die Hard. The problem is almost too much familiarity and a lot of the same old same old. It's not a bad movie. It's just not a good movie.



While on a tour of the White House with his young daughter, a Capitol policeman (Tatum) springs into action to save his child and protect the president (Foxx) from a heavily armed group of paramilitary invaders. This of course is after failing to get a job with the Secret Service and trying to overcome a career full of mistakes and lack of follow through. The film is directed by Roland Emmerich who is most famous for Independence Day. This guy loves destroying our nation's capital on film for some reason. There is plenty of destruction. It is tough to see D.C. in such ruin. Suspend some disbelief and there is certainly an audience who will be into the film.

 
My biggest problem with the film was too much cheese and predictability. I was never surprised or on edge. I was entertained. Jamie Foxx added little bits of Obama to his portrayal of the president, but he never really won me over. The Jordan's were a nice touch, but he never came across as a believable politician to me. I like Foxx, but just not in this role. The cheese and no so subtle political messages were a bit much. Channing Tatum was the other problem. He is not a hero type. He has an OK look, but he plays better in things like romantic comedies, dramas, and movies about male strippers. I had a hard time buying him as the hero of the free world.  James Woods, on the other hand, was a really solid villain. He is showing his age, but he commands the screen when he is on it.

 There are some twists, but you see most of them coming. It isn't a bad movie and women will probably love it for Tatum. In a summer filled with huge block buster movies, White House Down falls short. It is entertaining and at no point did I feel like leaving the theater. I just liked this movie better when it was called Olympus Has Fallen.