The Sentinel (2006 film)

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For other uses, see Sentinel.
The Sentinel
Directed by Clark Johnson
Produced by Bill Carraro
Michael Douglas
Marcy Drogin
Arnon Milchan
George Nolfi
Written by Gerald Petievich
(Novel)
George Nolfi
(screenplay)
Starring Michael Douglas
Kiefer Sutherland
Eva Longoria
Martin Donovan
and Kim Basinger
Music by Christophe Beck
Cinematography Gabriel Beristain
Editing by Cindy Mollo
Distributed by 20th Century Fox
Release date(s) April 21, 2006
Running time 105 min.
Language English
Budget $60 million
Gross revenue $77,920,346
IMDb profile

The Sentinel is a 2006 thriller film about a veteran Secret Service bodyguard who is suspected as a traitor after an attempted assassination of the president reveals that someone within the Service is providing information to the assassins. The film stars Michael Douglas as the veteran agent, Kiefer Sutherland as his protégé, Eva Longoria Parker as a rookie Secret Service agent, and Kim Basinger in the role of the First Lady. It is based on the novel of the same name by former Secret Service Agent Gerald Petievich. It was filmed in Toronto, Canada.

Tagline: In 141 years, there's never been a traitor in the Secret Service.... Until Now.

Contents

[edit] Cast

[edit] Plot

Pete Garrison (Michael Douglas) is a Secret Service agent and one of the personal bodyguards for the First Lady of the United States Sarah Ballentine (Kim Basinger), with whom he is having an affair. He is one of the oldest and most experienced agents, having been involved in saving Ronald Reagan's life during the Reagan assassination attempt. A fellow agent and close friend, Charlie Merriweather (played by Clark Johnson), is later assassinated in front of his home. He gets wind from a trusted informant that the killing of Merriweather is related to an assassination plot against the President. The information provided by the informant revealed that a mole with access to the President's security detail had provided information to the assassins. The Secret Service Protective Intelligence Division, led by Garrison's former protégé and ex-friend David Breckinridge (Kiefer Sutherland) with rookie partner Jill Marin (Eva Longoria), is tasked with investigating the plot, which begins with polygraphs for every agent. Meanwhile, the mole discovers the discussion with the informant and Garrison's affair with the First Lady, and attempts to blackmail him by luring him to a coffee shop known to be a meeting point for Colombian gangs. Along with failing the polygraph test (for lying about the affair), Garrison becomes unwittingly framed by the mole and becomes the prime suspect for providing the information to the assassins. When Breckinridge confronts Garrison at his home and begins to interrogate him about his dealings with the plot, the source of the two's estrangement comes to light: Garrison supposedly had an affair with Breckinridge’s wife and caused the breakup of their marriage, which he denies. Garrison escapes capture and conducts an independent investigation of the assassination plot, while making brief contact with the First Lady to deny his involvement. He tries to contact the informant who gave him the tip, but finds that he has been killed. He briefly encounters Breckinridge while finding the informant, but Breckinridge refuses to kill him, despite giving other agents "shoot to kill" orders. Using his contacts with sympathetic agents and family members, he stumbles onto an apartment rented by one of the assassins, and finds information that the assassins are headed to Toronto, Canada to attack the president at the G8 summit. He tells Jill Marin of the discovery as he leaves but later finds that any incriminating evidence has been removed before she can arrive.

Meanwhile, the First Lady discloses her affair with Garrison to Breckinridge, who catches up to Garrison in Toronto and tells him that he believes that Garrison is innocent. Together, they discover the identity of the assassins and the mole, senior agent William Montrose (Martin Donovan), who was never polygraphed. Montrose is in charge of directing security at the G8 summit. Montrose is revealed to be working with the assassins against his will, as they are holding his family hostage to force him to cooperate. Breckinridge and Garrison race to the summit, trying to whisk the President away to safety, with the assassins, some of whom are dressed as RCMP officers and soldiers, trying to kill the President while their Leader, "The Handler" (Ritchie Coster), grabs the First Lady as a hostage. Several agents are killed such as Ed and Pamela and Montrose is killed by a sniper while in his last act, saving the President. Ultimately, Jill Marin and Breckinridge are able to successfully save the President while Garrison kills the Handler and saves the First Lady before the assassin leader can shoot anyone, but Garrison is forced to take an early retirement due to the disclosure of the affair with the First Lady.

[edit] Critical reception

The film received generally poor reviews, scoring 34% on Rotten Tomatoes.[1] The BBC review described it being "as compelling as watching the ink dry on a superfluous UN treaty". Some reviewers such as the Los Angeles Times, enjoyed the film .[2]

[edit] DVD

[edit] DVD releases

DVD Name Region 1 Region 2
The Sentinel August 29, 2006 January 29, 2007

[edit] Cast interviews

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Sentinel Movie Reviews, Pictures - Rotten Tomatoes
  2. ^ 'The Sentinel' - MOVIE REVIEW - Los Angeles Times - calendarlive.com

[edit] External links