Washington and Ms. Bening play smart, interesting characters who never quite connect, while Willis turns himself into the loosest military cannon this side of Dr. Strangelove.
The Siege (1998)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:58
Fresh:25
Rotten:33
Average Rating:5.8/10
Consensus: An exciting, well-paced action film.
Runtime: 1 hr 56 mins
Genre: Action/Adventure
US Box Office: $0
Synopsis: When the U.S. military abducts a Muslim leader, New York City becomes the target of several terrorist attacks in this gripping political thriller ripped from newspaper headlines. Denzel Washington... When the U.S. military abducts a Muslim leader, New York City becomes the target of several terrorist attacks in this gripping political thriller ripped from newspaper headlines. Denzel Washington stars as Anthony "Hub" Hubbard, the head of the FBI terrorism task force who is charge of investigating the bombings. Ironically, Hub's partner, Frank Haddad (Tony Shalhoub), is Arab-American and must fight for his family's rights as the citizens of New York become increasingly paranoid about the Arab-American population. Elise Kraft (Annette Bening) is an undercover CIA official and Middle East expert who is also investigating the terrorist attacks and joins Hub and Frank as they search for the terrorists. As Hub, Elise, and Frank work to uncover the source of the terrorism, the city erupts in escalating madness, spiraling out of control until the government sends in General William Devereaux (Bruce Willis), who takes over the city and declares martial law. Ultimately, the government seizes the male Arab-American population of New York in makeshift internment camps in this incredibly relevant and cautionary thriller that examines the real dilemma of how a democratic society can uphold the rights of its citizens while under military protection. Director Edward Zwick's film features excellent performances from an all-star cast and includes real footage of President Clinton addressing the problem of terrorism. [More]
Starring: Denzel Washington, Annette Bening, Bruce Willis, Tony Shalhoub
Starring: Denzel Washington, Annette Bening, Bruce Willis, Tony Shalhoub, Sami Bouajila, Liana Pai
Director: Edward Zwick
Director: Edward Zwick
Screenwriter: Edward Zwick, Menno Meyjes, Lawrence Wright
Producer: Lynda Obst, Edward Zwick
Composer: Graeme Revell
Reviews for The Siege
The first hour is riveting, with a couple of particularly tense scenes. But things go hideously awry from there as the ham-fisted messages begin to dominate.
I suggest you catch it on a cheapie night in the theatres, or more sensibly, wait for it on video and enjoy it during those long winter months.
Wildly schizoid, The Siege manages the feat of being both intelligent and irresponsible, serious and silly.
The movie does deliver its share of action and spectacle, but action and spectacle are clearly not all Zwick and company had in mind with this fumbled Siege.
Could someone please turn down Denzel Washington's Righteousness Meter? It's set too high.
The Siege demonstrates just how easy it is for a movie to divide people into 'good' and 'bad.'
The beginning of the movie was slow, but the middle and the end were exciting and suspenseful.
The mediocre result is dismayingly unworthy of Washington and Zwick's combined talents.
This movie has a very strong and compelling narrative thread running through it, and it benefits from expert direction that elevates the tension to a pitched height.
The Siege obviously is an ambitious thriller that has some valid issues on its mind. Unfortunately, the movie never really does much more than just raise the right questions.
While not especially clever or creative, The Siege ... grabs the audience by the intellect and doesn't let go for 120 minutes.
The prejudicial attitudes embodied in the film are insidious, like the anti-Semitism that infected fiction and journalism in the 1930s--not just in Germany, but in Britain and America.
The concept deserves more than heroes and villains pointing guns at each other.
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