Deterrence

Rating

Director

Rod Lurie

Screenplay

Rod Lurie

Length

1h 44m

Starring

Kevin Pollak, Timothy Hutton, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Clotilde Courau, Badja Djola, Sean Astin, Mark Thompson, Michael Mantell, Kathryn Morris, Ryan Cutrona, Joe McCrackin, Scoot Powell, J. Scott Shonka, James Curley

MPAA Rating

R

Review

PREFACE:
In the early 2000s, I was writing reviews for an outfit called Apollo Guide Reviews. That website has since been closed down.

Attempting to reconstruct those reviews has been an exercise in frustration. Having sent them to Apollo Guide via email on a server I no longer have access to (and which probably doesn’t have records going back that far), my only option was to dig through The Wayback Machine to see if I could find them there. Unfortunately, while I found a number of reviews, a handful of them have disappeared into the ether. At this point, almost two decades later, it is rather unlikely that I will find them again.

Luckily, I was able to locate my original review of this particular film. Please note that I was not doing my own editing at the time, Apollo Guide was. As such, there may be more than your standard number of grammatical and spelling errors in this review. In an attempt to preserve what my style had been like back then, I am not re-editing these reviews, which are presented as-is.

REVIEW:
When U.S. President Harry S. Truman approved the nuclear destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, he not only shortened the Second World War, he also brought the dangers of nuclear holocaust into the forefront of American minds. Deterrence examines what it might be like for a non-elected Jewish President (stay with me here…) to make such an important decision in the future.

It’s 2008 and a nasty presidential election is brewing with incumbent Walter Emerson – appointed after the death of his predecessor – facing a tough race, and he’s currently trailing in the polls. The film opens during a ferocious blizzard that traps Emerson and his small staff in a small Colorado diner.

Years after Saddam Hussein was beaten back to Iraq, Saddam’s son has followed in his footsteps. Iraq invades Kuwait, prompting Emerson to make an important decision: whether or not to drop a nuclear weapon on Baghdad. The decision isn’t easy and the restaurant’s stranded patrons all have something to say on the issue.

Shot solely on location in the diner, Deterrence subtracts the fancy special effects, lavish sets and opulent costumes of most movies, to focus on its pensive story. In support of this interesting plot, several cast members excel in portraying their characters vividly.

Kevin Pollack plays the belaboured president. His performance alone helps propel the story from far-fetched into the realm of realistic fiction. There’s little this president doesn’t know about military conflict, being a former advisor on world affairs. Emerson has tact and makes decisions with very little hesitation, as any good president should.

Timothy Hutton plays Marshall Thompson, President Emerson’s chief advisor. Thompson is a little too ambitious for his own good, but provides for an excellent counterpoint to some of Emerson’s decisions. Providing a third view of the situation, Gayle Redford (Sheryl Lee Ralph) is another presidential advisor and her common sense, down-to-earth approach to the situation is not only refreshing, but also necessary to further the storyline and fully engage the audience. Hutton is good, but chews the scenery at times, while Ralph is just consistently excellent.

The rest of the cast is less impressive, but don’t need to be as they primarily pose for the camera of director/screenwriter Rod Lurie, a former film critic. Clearly, Lurie’s mind for words far exceeds his eye for setting. While his direction leaves a lot to be desired, his desire to convey the complexity of the situation is admirable.

Deterrence has many bonuses, and the best is its attention to human emotion. Emerson makes a decision that could end millions of people’s lives and he isn’t going to make it lightly.

There’s plenty here to keep the average moviegoer interested, but this is really a thinking-person’s film. Like a game of chess that’s played in the diner during the blizzard, international diplomacy involves strategy beyond comparison. It’s not just a King you’re playing to capture; it’s the lives of millions that you’re trying to protect.

Review Written

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