Tampa Film Fan

film fan finding:the sentinel

I didn’t think Michael Douglas could pull it off, but he did. He took a role we’ve seen a thousand times — the seasoned old pro so dedicated to the company (in this case, the Secret Service) that he’ll sacrifice his reputation and his career for the greater good — and made it work. In The Sentinel, Douglas plays a Secret Service veteran revered for taking a bullet for President Reagan in 1980 who is having an affair with the current First Lady (played by Kim Basigner) who he’s sworn to protect. When his estranged protege (Kiefer Sutherland) is put in charge of the investigation to find the CIA mole behind the plan to assassinate the president, Douglas becomes the main suspect rather than confess his affair with the First Lady.

After establishing the main characters, the movie shifts to the standard uncovering-the-dark-secret-while-running-for-your-life plot. I got caught up in it and thoroughly enjoyed it, although I felt like I shouldn’t have because I’ve seen it done a thousand times before. The Sentinel rises above the stereotypes to become an engaging and suspenseful thriller.

Film Fan Finding: B+