This is a FANTASTIC film! All the nit-picking aside, I just re-watched this film and I was thrilled AGAIN, even though I sort-of remembered the outcome. The suspense is absolutely biting right up to the end. I don't really care that "Olympus Has Fallen" came out at roughly the same time -- leave that to someone who cares -- this film stands on its own! Great film, don't pass it up. Those who made this film really cared to make the best action film they could, and it shows. Besides, what's wrong with the US completely pulling out of the Middles East? Sounds good to me. Are you listening Mr. President?

The year 2013, three months after "Olympus Has Fallen" had been released, Director Roland Emmerich presents another 100+ Million U.S. Dollars production with "White House Down" after his low-budget-excursion with a surprisingly compelling "Anonymous" in 2011. "White House Down" has not the wit nor the hard-boiled consequence of Antoine Fuqua's "Olympus Has Fallen", nevertheless Emmerich's picture, teaming up once again with cinematographer Anna Foerster, creates some face-paced action scene editorials with slow-motion shot integration, having pushed the stunt coordinating department to the maximum with water falling from sprinkler security systems, splintering wood appliances, sparks flying and hand-to-hand combats.Director Roland Emmerich utilizes simply any weaponry from the property box. Knifes, pistols and rifles are all in to keep the action factor high enough to sit through a two-hour movie, which could have been entertainment of the highest level, if the main characters of President Sawyer and Agent Cale - a getting together match with potential deeply beating actors Jamie Foxx and Channing Tatum - would have received an edge of vulnerability and uncertainty in their introducing scenes instead of being unbeatable charming already. But the director falls in his old traps again, which happened frequently as in "10,000 BC" and "2012" produced between 2007 and 2009, where driving characters get reduced to puppets on a special-effects-plate.Director Antoine Fuqua handled the White House attack scenario with half the budget too a much grittier visuals and managed an electrified cast. Roland Emmerich decided to use an all over cleaned-up and polished digital look for his picture, which underlines the idealistic stereo-separated antagonist cast, bringing actors together as match-point up-playing actor James Woods, accompanied by a to an right-hand animalistic mercenary reduced Jason Clarke, who unfortunately have been left alone on set for too long and hardly come out of the comfort zone to act into a full-frontal psyche confrontation against the opposing team-mates Foxx & Tantum, which are split apart most of the time, not only in tension points as well as in a spacious White House sound stage location anyways.The uneven entertainment factor of "White House Down" points mainly to missed opportunities of screenwriter James Vanderbilt to be an active member of the production team, where eventually two or three re-written scenes would have done the trick for the movie to become a box office success and further could have make look director Roland Emmerich look better; does not make "Anonymous" (2011) being a lucky strike of directorial sophistication on acting subtleties.© 2017 Felix Alexander Dausend (Cinemajesty Entertainments LLC)

"White House Down" is the perfect action flick, it is fast-paced and has a decent plot. Performances, directing, editing, e.c.t is brilliant, but the film score is generic, the competitor "Olympus Has Fallen" is nowhere near as good as this movie, however the film score from "Olympus Has Fallen" is the only thing that is better.Apparently Channing Tatum's character is a homage to Bruce Willis's character from the "Die Hard" movies hence the white vest (or "wife beater" as Americans call it, although it is a very inappropriate and strange name for a piece of clothing) "White House Down" is actually better than all of the "Die Hard" films combined, there's always too many things going on in the "Die Hard" flicks (apart from "Die Hard 4.0" which is very watchable) "White House Down" keeps the movie plot simple.There's a scene where a secret service agent laughs mockingly at "John Cale"'s (Channing Tatum) job description, that secret service agent is just weird! "John" is part of the Capitol Police and is on the protection detail of the Vice President - that's a massive achievement, it isn't like "John" is a janitor and even if he was that is still a hard working job.The father/daughter relationship is clichéd, he's never there so she resents him until there's a life and death scenario and he goes out of his way to save her and she loves him all over again.This motion picture is guns, guns and more guns. Action packed.White House Down = Brilliant, 10 out of 10.

Up against 'Olympus Has Fallen' in a bizarre year that has two films with identical subjects, this film falls foul of the 5.0 threshold rule. Whilst being an enjoyable romp that get's it edging over the IMDb 5 score, it then enters the zone of 'could this film have been better ?'. Humour around 5, love interest around 4 (after some heavy editing), action around 7 but very unconnected. Channing Tatum's film (he produced it as well) deserves a strong 6 but was looking at a 7 if the points all connected.