Absolute Power has one of the best premises of any thriller I've ever heard of. It starts out with a quiet loner who goes to a huge countryside mansion in the middle of the night and robs the secret vault clean. He is interrupted when two drunk people enter the room not knowing that he can watch from inside the revolving door which is a two-way mirror. What he witnesses he can't believe: the President involved in the killing of a woman and his Chief of Staff attempting the cover-up.
The first 30 minutes of this are spectacular. Eastwood's simple, straightforward style of direction is perfect in laying out the setting and action that occurs. As he starts to run with Secret Service, police and assassins chasing him, the plot goes a little awry but never into B-movie material. Eastwood is too reformed to be ridiculous and though some scenes may seem too unbelievable or outlandish, they are handled with professionalism so as to make us think they could happen.
The cast is outstanding. Eastwood delivers as the smart and slick jewel thief you cannot underestimate, Hackman is good but very underused as the scumbag president, Ed Harris is solid as the fervent police detective and Laura Linney is wonderful as Eastwood's estranged daughter who has serious trust issues with her father. There is a lot going on here and it all comes down on a rainy night in Washington. This is not one of Eastwood's best films compared to Unforgiven, Mystic River or Million Dollar Baby. Yet, it is a very smart and fun thriller that has its head in the right place. Sometimes, you just need to take a break from the more serious films out there and enjoy what cinema was originally created for. Here, Eastwood accomplishes just that.
The first 30 minutes of this are spectacular. Eastwood's simple, straightforward style of direction is perfect in laying out the setting and action that occurs. As he starts to run with Secret Service, police and assassins chasing him, the plot goes a little awry but never into B-movie material. Eastwood is too reformed to be ridiculous and though some scenes may seem too unbelievable or outlandish, they are handled with professionalism so as to make us think they could happen.
The cast is outstanding. Eastwood delivers as the smart and slick jewel thief you cannot underestimate, Hackman is good but very underused as the scumbag president, Ed Harris is solid as the fervent police detective and Laura Linney is wonderful as Eastwood's estranged daughter who has serious trust issues with her father. There is a lot going on here and it all comes down on a rainy night in Washington. This is not one of Eastwood's best films compared to Unforgiven, Mystic River or Million Dollar Baby. Yet, it is a very smart and fun thriller that has its head in the right place. Sometimes, you just need to take a break from the more serious films out there and enjoy what cinema was originally created for. Here, Eastwood accomplishes just that.