End Game (2006)

Wow! Such a good movie.

one of my absolute favorites!

Good start, but then it gets ruined

I saw this movie before reading any reviews, and I thought it was very funny. I was very surprised to see the overwhelmingly negative reviews this film received from critics.

I recommend "End Game" to all JFK buffs, as an example of covert propaganda. The premise is ridiculous and the conclusion outrageous. For the real "End Game", see the Alex Jones documentary. And for the real Secrect Service agent account, see Abraham Bolden's book. This film, and I hesitate to use that designation "film" as it is a padded hour TV show at best, cannot be taken seriously as entertainment. The 90 min. run time is merciful. I would think it was intended as a joke were it not in such bad taste. A suspension of disbelief is required and critical thinking will just spoil the intended effect which I assume is gullible acceptance of a twisted world view.

Don't get fooled with all the big names like Burt Reynolds,James Woods and Anne Archer. They are just glorified extra's. Their scenes were probably filmed in one day or so. Whatever their motives for being in this movie, if you have an actor like James Woods you better make good use of him. To me this is a sign of bad direction through and through. The plot itself wasn't that bad. And the acting from most of the actors was above average. Cuba Gooding Jr. however was terrible. He was so unbelievable that I almost laughed at his dramatic scenes. And since this was meant as a serious movie that can't be a good thing. The action scenes were not bad,but they lacked that special punch to make it more exciting. Again better direction was needed. Also the pacing was wrong for a movie like this. It took the main character almost half an hour to get in action. For an action thriller of only 90 minutes that is far too slow. The only redeeming factor is Angie Harmon. She does her best to make it all work. Too bad the director left her hanging. Yes,this movie could have been much better with a great director. Andy Cheng is far too inexperienced as a director to pull it off. And for an action/stunt coordinator of his caliber you'd expect at least more exciting action scenes. Don't waste your time with this one. Avoid!

**MAJOR SPOILERS** With his second term coming to an end as the President, Jack Scalia, is about to give his farewell address to a overflow and cheering crowd in the nation's capital tragedy strikes. As fate would have it he never made it to the podium to give his speech.As the assassin, with a forged journalist badge, pops out of the crowd and gets off a shot the President's personal Secret Service man Alex Thomas (Cuba Goodling Jr), who's job it is to guard him with his life, sticks out his hand and the bullet hits and ricochets off it. This courageous act on Agent Thomas' part causes the assassin's bullet, that would have missed, to hit the president in the chest leaving him mortally wounded. The assassin Lewis Detimore, Patrick Treadway, is killed on the spot by Agent Thomas and a number of other Secret Service agents before he can get off a second shot that may well had hit the First Lady, Anne Archer, and killed her as well.At first the killer is thought to be your average lone nut assassin with the case of the murdered president solved before the story hit the morning papers. Not for a moment believing the official story nosy and hot-shot Washington Inlander reporter Kate Crawford, Angle Harmon, smelled a big scoop and went after it. Uncovering the dead assassin's background Kate soon realizes that Detimore who was dying of cancer was in fact a Lee Harvey Oswald-like pasty planted at the scene to take the heat off those who really had the president done in.Getting in touch with a now dead drunk and guilt-ridden Agent Thomas, over his inability of not saving the president's life, Kate tries to get him to realize that there's more to the president's murder then what meets the eye or makes the 6:00 O'Clock Evening News. It's not Kate who convinces Thomas but a number of operatives, in the president's assassination, who soon end up dead in their trying to murder both him and Kate in order to keep their mouths shut!Your basic conspiracy movie that has both Agent Thomas and reporter Kate Crawford in the both gun and bomb sights of those who did in the President of the United States. As it becomes more and more obvious to the American public, through Kate's reporting, that the deceased assassin, Lewis Detimore, didn't act alone Secret Service Chief Vaughn Stevens, James Woods, makes the uncovering of who was behind the president's murder top priority. You soon begin to realize that the top priority that Stephens has in mind is really to cover his and is agency's a** in not preventing the assassination then in finding out who actually committed it!Not at first really knowing it Agent Thomas had, in trying to cover up his beloved president's secret life, already solved who was the person responsible and the reason behind the murder the president! But as it later tuned out Thomas was either too naive or unmotivated, in not consciously wanting to believe who had the president killed, that he completely overlooked it!***SPOILER ALERT*** The shocking truth, after about a dozen people end up getting killed in the film, to who set up the president and who in fact was the brains behind his murder really isn't that shocking at all. Having stepped on a number of powerful peoples toes during his tenure as the President of the United States those who wanted to do the President in not only had the means in doing it but also very personal reasons for having it done! And what both Agent Thomas and reporter Kate Crawford were soon to find out, to their utter shock and frustration, is that these very powerful people were too far up the totem pole, in the Washington D.C political establishment, to ever be brought to justice for doing it!

Cuba Gooding Jr. is a secret service agent who blames himself over the assassination of the U.S. President, i'll point out straight away that this is not the type of role that this very talented actor is noted for, and this film shows us why. He teams up with a persistent news reporter (Angie Harmon) to uncover the conspiracy surrounding the president's death, and so on, blah, blah, blah.Even with a cast of James Woods, Cuba Gooding Jr, Anne Archer and Angie Harmon 'End Game' fails to grab your attention, plain and simple; some of the action is good, the acting isn't all bad and the story although clichéd and done before could have lead to an entertaining and enjoyable movie - WELL IT DOESN'T! The writing of the script and the direction makes absolutely sure of that, at no point does it suck you into the story or make you give the slightest thought to any of the characters.4/10 It's Boring, Predictable and Dull.