Our Flick of the Week is “Murder at 1600,” yet another presidential caper — a subject that is really getting tiresome; I’m starting to hate the sight of the White House — involving the killing of a beautiful worker bee for the Executive Branch, who is having an affair with the president’s hot-to-trot son (Tate Donovan). And if all signs point to his guilt, well, you know the rest. And don’t tell me I’ve spoiled anything for you. I haven’t; the hack screenwriters have.
On the case is a D.C. homicide detective played by Wesley Snipes — we meet him in another cliche situation as he disarms a gun-toting suicide in the street — who will bump up against establishment forces within the White House as he tries to solve the crime. Among those giving him grief are assorted Secret Service agents (including Diane Lane, doing her best imitation of Jodie Foster’s buttoned-up FBI agent in “The Silence of the Lambs” and the president’s Chief of Staff (Alan Alda, convincing as a tough guy), who has his own problems with his boss.
Why are we getting so many movies about nasty goings-on in the White House?
Two words: Bill Clinton. Young screenwriters and directors feel comfortable trading in his foibles and are writing stories reflecting his administration from every possible angle, including distorted ones.
But talking about “Murder at 1600” in these terms is really not appropriate. This is a cheap thriller that makes very little sense, about as much as “Absolute Power” with president Gene Hackman involved in a murder. Enough already! Rated R. (star) (star)
– PARADISE ROAD. The true story of a mixed bag of female prisoners in a World War II Japanese prison camp in the Sumatran jungle. The story elements are recycled out of countless similar male adventure stories, but the casting of Glenn Close, Frances McDormand and other excellent actresses recommends this familiar survival material. R. (star) (star) (star)