This film was written and directed by Joe Chappelle no relation to Dave.
It is a political thriller starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Tika Sumpter. This film had me gripped from the beginning to the end. In the film, Tika plays as Libby who was a top aid to the vice president during a time post 911 where there was a possibility of taking out five terrorists with one tactile nuclear strike. But the undertones of the movie take on a much more serious subject.
Spoilers…
I did find it weird that a student of Libbys, Martin played by Ben Tavossoli was so fascinated by Libby, so much so that he bugged her house, placing cameras all around including her bedroom. I was trying to figure out if he was some sort of government spy. It turned out he was vehemently opposed to her part in the bombing, thinking she was the person making the final decision. It wasn’t until she caught him at gunpoint after he broke into her house, that she sat him down and asked him to read her memoir, that he finally came around to her side. By this time, her ex-boyfriend played by Jeff Hephner was aggressively trying to prevent her from publishing said memoirs. When the CIA appeared at her house, they made their getaway, with Martin coming up with hiding places, etc. He was made out to be super intelligent. They spent the night on the beach, where the CIA finally found and extracted Libby, mysteriously leaving Martin on the beach with the memoirs. I knew the ending was going to be explosive and it was, but I had to suspend my disbelief because I just don’t think the CIA would have taken them both out, at least not with plastic explosives, and not on American soil with innocents nearby. Having said that, I really liked this film and plan to re-watch it at some point.
*****