Absolute Power (1997)

The movie starts out nice and is OK almost through the midway, but it felt like it was wrapped up without much thought and with many flaws. There are certain actions that add no strength to the plot and you start to wonder why it was done that way. There are also loose ends at the end with no explanations.

A film like this would be impossible to make in the current year, here's why: Absolute Power makes a sad but true political statement, a statement about corruption, dishonesty and the dark nature that all people have inside of them.This is what we see in Absolute Power. The president of the United States of America is portrayed as a corrupt, criminal person. While the thief, who would be seen as the bad guy in reality is actually the good guy. Corruption is our greatest enemy.This movie couldn't be made today, because nowadays we live in a more sensitive world than we lived in back in 1997 (the year or release). Absolute Power would have no chance of being released due to it's political undertones. Enough about the politics, let's talk a little bit about the movie.This film is not a stand out thriller, but it's not a bad one at all. We have a great cast with Clint Eastwood, my personal favorite actor, Gene Hackman and Ed Harris. They're all doing a fine job, but they're all not even close to their best performances. A thing this movie lacked for me was that big "WOW" moment. There are a few tense scenes scattered across the two hours, but there is no standout moment, action wise or character wise. The only moment that really got me was Luther watching TV at the airport, which was an interesting piece of character development.Absolute Power is a well written movie though, the plot ties together pretty good and it's not as predictable as most thrillers are. A fine movie overall, not highly recommended but if you're interested about political statements in film, then this is a good pick for you.

The opening scenes of this classy thriller are so gripping that watching the rest of the action becomes totally irresistible. A cat burglar witnesses a murder in highly unusual circumstances and then has to go on the run to escape those who want to make him the fall guy for the crime. The fact that his pursuers are intent on assassinating him, then turns his already dangerous mission into a desperate race against time.Luther Whitney (Clint Eastwood) is the veteran thief who, for the last heist of his career, breaks into the mansion owned by political power broker Walter Sullivan (E.G.Marshall) when he and his family are apparently away on a short vacation. After making his way to the vault that adjoins the main bedroom, Luther steals large amounts of jewellery and cash but then suddenly has to stop when he hears people heading in the direction of the bedroom. Hidden in the vault, Luther watches silently through a two-way mirror as the President of the United States, Allen Richmond (Gene Hackman) and Walter Sullivan's much younger wife, Christy (Melora Hardin) enter the bedroom and start indulging in some sexual foreplay. The exchanges between the drunken couple quickly turn violent and when Christy stabs Richmond in the arm with a letter-opener, a couple of Secret Service agents rush into the room and shoot Christy dead.White House Chief of Staff, Gloria Russell (Judy Davis) arrives on the scene and organises a cover-up to make it look as if Christy had been killed by a burglar and shortly after, Luther makes his escape with his loot and the letter-opener. In the days that follow, Luther changes his original plan to leave the country and becomes determined to bring the President to justice. Some complications develop, however, as his estranged daughter, Kate (Laura Linney) who's a prosecuting attorney and Detective Seth Frank (Ed Harris) cooperate to search for evidence and both the Secret Service and Walter Sullivan attempt to have him killed.By using his trump card (the letter-opener with the President's fingerprints and blood on it), Luther then tries to trigger a sequence of events that he hopes will lead to the President ultimately being made accountable for his role in Christy's murder.The pacing of this movie is masterful as it contributes both to the tension that's such a strong feature of what happens as well as being conducive to developing the relationships between the story's interesting characters. Clint Eastwood's direction is also impressive, especially during the opening scenes and in a later sequence where Luther meets his daughter at a café in very dangerous circumstances."Absolute Power" is a fine adaptation of the best selling novel of the same name by David Baldacci and features a terrific cast of top actors who all contribute very good performances. A scene in which Detective Frank talks very affably to the man he suspects of carrying out the heist at Sullivan's mansion is a real highlight, as Ed Harris makes his comments so loaded and Clint Eastwood responds in the same style. Judy Davis also adds a lot of humour as the Chief of Staff who's in charge but not in control. Her eccentricities and constant state of panic add a more sympathetic dimension to her amoral character whilst also adding an effective counterpoint to the high level of tension that runs right through this entertaining thriller.

Absolute Power (1997): Dir: Clint Eastwood / Cast: Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Ed Harris, Laura Linney, Judy Davis: Intriguing setup has a murder witnessed through a looking glass. The title can refer to the President who is guilty of a crime or the thief who witnessed it. Clint Eastwood stars as a thief who does drawings of the places he plans to rob. He lifts priceless items before hearing footfall so he ducks behind a two-way mirror. The President and a young woman enter and get intimate. After a struggle, two secret service men storm in and shoot her dead. The chief of staff constructs a plan to avoid conspiracy but they overlook the letter opener used by the victim, which the thief escapes with. Eastwood directs advocating brains over brawn in the solution. Humor is presented when he dons disguises and investigates. Gene Hackman is well cast as President whose victim was the daughter of a billionaire. Eastwood will toy with their paranoia until he meets his down fall. Ed Harris is superb as a cop who doesn't suspect the thief of murder and doesn't realize that his office phone has been bugged. Laura Linney provides an emotional centre as Eastwood's daughter who assists police and becomes a target. Judy Davis is effective as the scheming chief of staff. Theme regards corrupt lifestyles and a desire to revert even when his nature refuses. Score: 10 / 10