| legeros.com > Movie Hell > 1998 > Reviews |
THE SIEGE is slow-going. Nifty premise, but it's botched by an overcomplicated script. The result is an overload of information that's neither affecting nor even that thought-provoking. (Mes- sage to the filmmakers: Keep It Simple, Stupid.) Denzel Washing- ton is his usual dramatically intense self, while Annette Bening adds some spunk as a slutty CIA spy/agent/covert-something. As the Army General who leads the title event, Bruce Willis is... Bruce Willis. (His character seems to have stepped out of anoth- er, more testosterone-rich flick.) Eh, the pyrotechnics are good, the stock situations comfortable, and dem are real APCs rumbling through the streets of Brooklyn. Some of the smaller details are priceless: a city bus backfires and everybody takes cover; a ter- rorist is interrupted at a school because "one of the moms was carrying a gun." Too bad the script presumes familiarity with all matters Constitutional. I was left with a million questions, the least of which was: can't the Army do whatever the Hell it wants while enforcing martial law? Including torturing prisoners?? With a good turn from Tony Shaloub. Edward Zwick (COURAGE UNDER FIRE, LEGENDS OF THE FALL) directs. (Rated "R"/118 min.) Grade: C Copyright 1998 Michael J. Legeros Movie Hell is a trademark of Michael J. Legeros
Originally posted to triangle.movies as
MOVIE HELL: November 16, 1998