Movie Review: The Sentinel

Stars: 3 out of 5

Pros: Great acting

Cons: Extremely weak story

The Bottom Line:

Promising story

Defeated by weak plotting

Results? Average

Clearing Your Name, Saving the President.  All in a Day's Work

Pete Garrison (Michael Douglas) has spent his whole life working for the Secret Service. He's risen through the ranks, and his current job is head of the First Lady's (Kim Basinger) security detail.

Complicating his life, he and the first lady have fallen in love and are having a secret affair. Someone has found out, however, and sent the incriminating pictures to Pete.

Meanwhile, Walter (Raynor Scheine), a former informant of Pete's, tells him someone is planning to kill the President (David Rasche). When the little intel that Walter was willing to part with proves true, the Secret Service springs into action. They have a mole in their department and need to find him or her before the murder takes place.

Unfortunately, the clues begin pointing to Pete. Internal investigator David Breckinridge (Kiefer Sutherland) is convinced Pete's the mole. Pete has no choice but to take off and find the truth himself. But can he do that without being arrested?

I'll admit, I was lured to see this movie based on TV advertisement placement. I am a huge fan of the show 24, and this movie looked like it could be similar. Plus it starred that show's Kiefer Sutherland.

Unfortunately, this movie didn't live up to my high expectations. The story is weak. Things came to the main characters, especially Pete, way too easily. I like seeing characters search for the information they need. Several pieces of information came so quickly, I had to guess how the character figured things out. That's hardly good story telling.

And don't even get me started on the climax. Several characters, including the villain, behave in completely illogical ways. Additionally, one plot thread is dropped, giving no resolution to that aspect of the story.

Since this is a thriller, I expected some tense moments. While I will admit to jumping a time or two, most of the time I wasn't pulled into the story. I cared about the characters, but the scenes that should have had me on the edge of my seat were rather ordinary.

The thing that works in this movie is the characters. The actors do a great job of making us care about what happens. Michael Douglas is in most every scene and does a fine job. Kiefer Sutherland gets to play the guy we're all hoping our hero can work around to save the day, a switch from his 24 character. He's up to the part. Not being a fan of Desperate Housewives, I hadn't seen Eva Longoria before, but she does a great job of playing the rookie caught between the two leads. Finally, Kim Basinger makes a great First Lady.

Another thing that sets this movie apart is the setting. Not only do we get great shots of Washington, DC, but we get to see the inside workings of the Secret Service, something I had no idea about. I found those parts of the movie fascinating. Additionally, several scenes take place in the country, and the settings are beautiful.

Honestly, this felt like half a movie, with scenes cut out from start to finish. I'm sure if I'd been able to see the whole movie, this would have been great. If you're interested, The Sentinel is worth seeing, but stick with renting the DVD or finding it on TV.