The Siege

The Siege details the chaos and violence that ensues after terrorists essentially wage war on New York City, with the narrative following a handful of characters as they attempt to stop the carnage by any means necessary. It’s clear immediately that The Siege, which is far more relevant today than it was in 1998, benefits substantially from star Denzel Washington’s electrifying and downright commanding turn as Anthony Hubbard, with the actor’s electrifying turn initially drawing one into the proceedings and, eventually, preventing the viewer from tuning out completely. Filmmaker Edward Zwick does a nice job of initially drawing the viewer into the proceedings, and the narrative, in the movie’s first half, moves along at a steady clip and boasts a handful of admittedly enthralling sequences (including a gripping hostage situation aboard a city bus). It’s the ongoing introduction of less-than-compelling elements that slowly-but-surely cements The Siege‘s downfall, with, for example, the growing emphasis on Annette Bening’s almost unconscionably annoying Elise Kraft certainly contributing heavily to the overall atmosphere of tedium. (It doesn’t help, certainly, that Bening delivers as broadly incompetent a performance as one can easily recall.) The increasingly erratic momentum is compounded by scripter Lawrence Wright’s decision to dwell on Hubbard’s seriously tedious investigation, and it goes without saying that’s one’s efforts at sustaining interest in the narrative grow more and more fruitless as time progresses – which ultimately confirms The Siege‘s place as a solid concept in search of a consistent (and engaging) execution.

*1/2 out of ****