The Sentinel (2006)

So, I did finish watching “The Sentinel (2006)” last night and I am holding on to the promise of writing on it as well, woah, I am on a spree.

The Sentinel is an old school cat-and-mouse thriller, in the mould of “U.S. Marshals (1998)“, of a top class Secret Services agent, played by Michael Douglas, under suspicion of being a traitor on a mission to assassinate the US President, chased by a Secret Services Investigator, played by Kiefer Sutherland. Pretty standard premise, super skills possessed by both of them, each trying outdo the other, at the same time, trying to identify the real mole in the organization.

Its a standard cookie-cutter thriller, this is no slow burn multi-layered cinema that needs you to think. But then, I knew that already, with an IMDB rating of 6.1, I knew what I was getting into – willingly. Sometimes, this is exactly what you want to unwind to – an easy masala fix after a long day of work (at home). So my expectations were set, and I am not going to try run this movie down for being a mindless thriller. In a single word, it was – adequate. The setup is well done, the characters are standard (nothing wrong with that) and the plot plays out at a fast enough pace, to not mull on the holes. There is eye candy if you tend to get bored of all-male action – Eva Longoria. Nothing is specifically memorable here, but its not unbearable as well. Trust me, there is unbearable stuff all the time, that I abandon in the first 10-15 minutes.

What I got thinking watching this one is about – Michael Douglas. What makes him tick. He has been a A list leading star for a very long time – he was 60+ at the time of this movie. He is a decent enough actor – no doubt. Not of the class of (say) Joaquin Phoenix or Ed Norton or Christian Bale, but decent enough. He is the same kind of actor as Tom Cruise. Tom Cruise has been the handsome lad with the boyish grin and charm to play himself over and over in all his movies. No matter what movie, Tom plays himself – there has to be a way to showcase that charm. Douglas is somewhat similar – you can still see him in all his roles. He isn’t someone to disappear in the character. He shows. But, what exactly? I suppose he is incredibly handsome – to some people, though I fail to see that. I don’t see a charm, or magnetism about him. The best movie of his, that I like is The Game, which is a director’s masterpiece – at a frantic pace, that never gives us a moment to settle in, and always questioning on what really is going on there. There, he ‘hides’ under the character – but for the director’s credit. Here, he is adequate – a womanizer, a handsome secret service agent, who is having an affair with the First Lady (raise the stakes!!). Just by being himself, he doesn’t quite endear himself with the audience. Why are we to root for him? Because he is Michael Douglas, and the director doesn’t want to spend time in fleshing him anymore. Same with Kim Basinger, the first lady. No time spent fleshing her character out. Infact, that plays a bit, to the advantage for the movie – in the sense, that for a while, I expected her to be on in the plot to assassinate the President – now that would have made things more interesting than the lame plot it finally was.

And what about Kiefer Sutherland. Honestly, I haven’t seen much of his work (not even on TV). Here, he is a cookie cutter character – a go straight investigator, who is beyond suspicion. That in a way hinders the movie, with only a few main characters anyway. The rule of ‘mystery movies’ is to pin the thing on one of the main characters – especially one who is not to be suspected – atleast initially. Thus basically eliminating the audience’s chances/ hopes to enjoy the guessing game.

So, there it is – a masala fried curry, with enough juices to get through a meal, with nothing memorable or noteworthy. Watch it if you like Michael Douglas or are just bored one evening.