Fine in idea and mostly passable in action scenes, but betrayed by subpar acting & a too-comedic tone make White House Down an unexceptional blockbuster. 4.2/10.

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When Capitol police officer John Cale (Channing Tatum) is denied his dream job of being Secret Service for President James Sawyer (Jamie Foxx), he takes his young daughter to the White House to tour and not disaapoint her. Their tour is cut short when a heavily armed paramilitary group takes control of the White House, and Cale finds himself with the responsibility of protecting and getting out the leader of the free world.

*Possible spoilers ahead*

Pros: Cool opening sequence with stunning shots of DC and the Lincoln Memorial, Jamie Foxx great as an Obama-like President, Channing Tatum’s John Cale a likable and rootable-for main character (also a badass in the action scenes) although slightly bad acting at times (still when he was a rookie actor and it shows), White House of course full of natural historic wonder & intrigue and a great setting for any movie especially an action movie, Maggie Gyllenhall from TDK a phenomenal actress (kind of slumming here tbh), gets to the action and crazy storyline quickly, good thrilling action scenes, Jamie Foxx and Channing Tatum a badass action duo, Jimmi Simpson fantastic as the main villain (Gavin Orsay from House of Cards, anyone?), some thrilling and creative action scenes like the Escalade car chases scene around the White House lawn,

Cons: Channing Tatum some slightly bad acting at times (still when he was a rookie and it shows), too many jokes and comedy but not enough action, James Woods’ villain motivation pretty weak/nonbelievable and his team a little silly at times, some horrific comedy lines like “Get your hands off my Jordans”, stereotypical action movie set-ups and poor writing often, Joey King extremely annoying as Emily Cale, 2hr11min WAY too long for an action movie with this little plot, almost too many mindless action scenes

Overall Rating: 4.2/10