Les pleins pouvoirs

Luther Whitney is a professional thief, he also happens to be exceptional at it. During a carefully planned burglary at the home of wealthy Walter Sullivan, Whitney is disturbed to hear voices coming from outside the room he is in. Hiding in a secret room he observes from behind a two-way mirror the cheating wife of Sullivan with her lover for the night. Whitney is further startled to find that the man in the company of Mrs Sullivan is none other than the current president of the United States, Allen Richmond. He is then horrified to witness the couples union getting out of control, Richmond starting to get far too heavy handed with the lady in question. Things spiral out of control and during the fight Mrs Sullivan goes to stab the President with a paper knife, thus giving the entering secret service agents no choice but to gun her down. Sensing a political scandal, the agents and Richmond's Chief Of Staff, Gloria Russell decide to cover the incident up. Whitney, after making his escape, doesn't know what to do, who's going to believe a renowned thief, but crucially, will he be allowed to live if he comes forward? Dastardly goings on and government cover ups are merely part of what is going on in the search for Absolute Power.

Absolute Power is a fine film, but I'm a little biased because I really like the pacing of the picture and more importantly, I like the plot. It's true that the film fails to capitalise on its first hour set up, we are brought into Whitney's world and given reminders of dodgy doings that blight so many countries political machinations, but then director Clint Eastwood and his team fall in to the trap of adding strands that merely alter the viewers attention span, thus taking us away from what was a concrete and wholly engrossing plot arc. But with a truly diamond cast of professionals in the piece, the film manages to stay the good side of good, tho the ending is one that is sure to be a divisive one for any prospective first time viewers. Eastwood stars as Whitney and is joined by Gene Hackman (President Allen Richmond), Ed Harris, Laura Linney, Scott Glenn, Dennis Haysbert, Judy Davis and E.G. Marshall. William Goldman adapts from David Baldacci's popular novel, and Eastwood's direction is the usual steady professional job that he would further enhance down the line with the likes of Mystic River and Million Dollar Baby.

Should have been a truly great political based thriller/drama, but as it is, I settle for it being a way above average one that has far too many good points to ever see it as being below average or bad. 7/10

I have to say, that, ok maybe some of the actions of this film are a little manifested, but nevertheless, it holds for some nice suspense when it is required, and it also has a lot of eclectic moments(i.e. moments when the feeling is far from previous, yet conveyed appropriately). Besides the plot, this film has a wonderful, albeit short, soundtrack(composed by Clint), and good settings. A nice little ending on it too. Oh, and I have to say that Ed Harris is a excellent at 'doing' the sarcastic cop. I love it!

The Narrative.

A consistent plot involving many different types of characters in the form of organised professional robber Whitney (Marvellously portrayed by Eastwood) who is involved in a huge conspiracy involving the very uncomfortable president Hackman.

Perhaps the story gets too involved at points with a lack of realism. However the film is always tense and engaging, especially the beginning which was definitely one of my all time favourite openings to a crime film. Tense, exciting and with a few twists it presents a realistic view of a robber caught up in what will surely be a huge case.

The story justifies the genre by being focused upon murders and robberies and adds sentimental value in the form of family and friendship values. Laura Linney (The Truman Show) is terrific as Eastwood's daughter and adds a great sentimental value to a heavy crime film. She is involved in a great twists towards the end which is a must watch.

The ending surprised me. Although there were great twists, the final few scenes and the way the narrative came to never felt quite justified in my opinion but then again I may have been expecting too much from a film that was consistent and engaging from the beginning. The film is always kept exciting through the tense robbery scenes, character actions and a plot about a man and his power.

Direction.

Eastwood's direction is simply breathtaking. The opening sequence where he explores the neatly kept mansion for his robbery is the best moment in the entire film; I was literally on the edge of my seat. Dark, quiet and with a grace that any director would be proud of I held my breathe from start to finish. Heavy critics may argue it conforms too much to an action styled genre with many shots appearing focusing in or around the main priority but I appreciated it for what it was, which was sheer brilliance.

Eastwood is outstanding in the whole of this film. Not only his ability to pull off a stern ageing character but this direction is also worthy of huge praise.

watch it if...you enjoy the crime genre and appreciate tense dramatic sequences.

but its simply just worth watching for the beginning.

Some actors, upon reaching their sixties or seventies, retire. Some enter into a sort of semi-retirement whereby they continue to accept cameo parts but not leading roles. Some, however, try and revisit the triumphs of their youth by making the same sort of films that they were making twenty or thirty years earlier. There are too many examples to list them all, but I was less than enthusiastic to note that Sylvester Stallone, at the age of sixty, has just made his sixth "Rocky" film and is currently working on his fourth "Rambo".

Clint Eastwood is a rare example of a star who managed to remain a leading man throughout his seventh and into his eighth decade, but did so without a desperate attempt to put the clock back. (Doubtless his status as a director and producer has given him a greater influence inside the industry than many of his contemporaries). In his early sixties he made "Unforgiven", one of the all-time great Westerns, in which he starred as an ageing gunfighter, and since then has made a number of other films, such as "The Bridges of Madison County" and "Million Dollar Baby", in which an older man takes centre stage. Occasionally his roles have contained elements of an old man's wishful thinking, such as his romance with Rene Russo in "In the Line of Fire", but even in that film his character's age was important to the plot.

"Absolute Power", made when Eastwood was sixty-seven, is another older man's film. His character, Luther Whitney, is a veteran burglar who has broken into the Washington mansion of an elderly millionaire named Walter Sullivan, where, from his hiding-place, he inadvertently witnesses a killing. Sullivan's young wife Christy enters the bedroom with her lover, who is none other than the President, Allen Richmond. What starts out as a consensual love-making session goes wrong when Richmond, clearly a lover of rough sex, starts slapping Christy. She takes exception to this and slaps him back. Things get out of hand, and she attempts to stab him with a letter-opener. Richmond calls for help and his Secret Service bodyguards burst into the room and open fire, killing Christy.

Some reviewers have described Christy's killing as "murder", but legally this is not correct. Had the two bodyguards ever stood trial for murder, they would have been acquitted as they were only carrying out their duty to protect the President's life, but things never get that far. Richmond is too shocked to take any action, but his Chief of Staff Gloria Russell, realising that if the truth ever came out it would destroy his career, organises a cover-up. When the President's staff realise that Luther was a witness to the killing, he is forced to go on the run.

This could have been the plot of a very mundane political thriller, but Eastwood, both as actor and director, is able to lift it above that level. Despite Luther's criminal tendencies, Eastwood is able to make him a sympathetic figure, a man with his own sense of decency and honour. He had the assistance of a very strong cast, featuring some of Hollywood's most accomplished actors. There is E.G. Marshall in his last feature film as Sullivan, Gene Hackman (always a very watchable villain) as the hypocritical Richmond, Judy Davis as Gloria and Ed Harris as the police chief who is investigating Christy's death and soon comes to realise that there is more to it than meets the eye. A particularly important role is played by the very talented Laura Linney as Luther's daughter Kate. She has become estranged from her father as she disapproves of his criminal lifestyle and now works as a criminal lawyer, prosecuting on behalf of the police. When she realises that her father is in danger, however, she comes to his assistance, and they start to rebuild their relationship.

The idea that their President might be a philanderer would have come as no surprise to most Americans in the mid-nineties, even though this film came out just before President Clinton was caught up in the Monica Lewinsky affair. Eastwood was not, however, interested in doing something along the lines of "Primary Colors" or "Wag the Dog"; there is no attempt to make Richmond a disguised portrait of Clinton, and we do not even learn if he is a Democrat or Republican. "Absolute Power" is intended as a thriller, not a satirical comedy. Nevertheless, it does tap into the feeling that many Americans have had, ever since the Watergate affair, that their Presidents cannot always be trusted to tell the truth. It is significant that the hero of this film is a burglar by trade; the implication is that such a man may be less of a crook than a politician. 7/10

There are many things about this movie which are nice. It surely follows the Eastwood/Siegel/Leone tradition, quick takes etc. but it's a nice film in many ways. A nice touch is the musical theme written by Eastwood himself, the second time of late he has done this. There's jazz anytime Eastwood can get it in there, but the performances from Linney and Ed Harris are convincing. This is a stellar cast that is used well. And yes, you can glimpse the Santa Monica mountains in Washington DC...