The Siege

This movie tries to be an action thriller and a heavy handed social drama at the same time. Unfortunately it does neither well. The actors are good and try their best but the material just does not gel together. The movie tries to preach against racism but at times it comes across racist itself.

Seems to be aiming for a realistic feel, but plot contrivances ruin that effect. Half of the main characters don't seem remotely plausible and this detracts a lot from the story. In the end we're left with an unremarkable terrorism-themed thriller.

It has a certain thematic ambition that's still relevant today, which makes me want to like it, but it's hard to get over the fact that every character except maybe Tony Shalhoub is 100% flat and personality-free. Denzel is always compelling to watch but his character here is an absolute cipher.

Is there any cliché they didn't put into this movie? Completely predictable.

Eerily prophetic. Denzel shines bright in this otherwise mediocre thriller.

I watched this to add a little Bruce Willis to my evening. Big mistake. Incidentally: this is the only movie I've ever seen that features my first car, a 1996 Ford Contour (beige) in a chase scene. Which is probably another reason you shouldn't watch it.

Years ahead of its time

The movie seems conflicted about everything it presents, which at least makes the viewer think. It's not bad, just unsubtle with eye rolls aplenty.

It is conflicting, but not even close in quality as sam jacksons torture film, i also didnt like how it had a slight tinge of terrorist sympathising,

I was surprised to discover this was made in '98 instead of post-9/11, the plot dealing with terrorism feels ahead of its time. The movies starts of pretty promising, but unfortunate the plot becomes more ludicrous in the second half and downright preachy at the end. Luckily Denzel and the always great Annette Bening plus Zwick's satisfactory enough execution keeps this from turning into a total dud.

First and probably last rewatch since seeing this at the cinema. The fact this came just three years before the 9/11 terror attacks is either prophetic or we know Bin-Laden was a Denzel fan. There's a good movie somewhere in here so you can see why there was so much talent attached but it just fails to work in it's execution leaving the largely forgettable political thriller that we ended up with.

Pretty good if you dont mind the improbable screenplay. I mean Samir (palestinian contact) doesnt have any names, yet after another terrorist attack (resulting in many deaths) he remembered that he knew that one possible terrorist LOL. All in all Denzel is great, Benning as a pretty much clueless CIA handler also is very good, Shalhoub gives some comedy relief (only brief), and only Willis is pretty much shit here.

58.000

A interesting thriller that, at the time o it's release was nothing special, looking back on it down, The Siege seems prophetic in the wake of Sept 11 and the War on Terror. How far are we willing to go to stop the next attack and what we will give up in the name of security are two major questions the film asks. While it's nothing special, it is worth checking out at least once.

Institutional politics as psychodrama. A heroic but rule-governed black man (the FBI) dates the quasi-daughter of a stiff and arrogant white man (the military), then bickers with him about the fact that she (the CIA) has slept with an Arab. They conclude the only way they can keep proper masculine control and protection over the women and children of America is to sacrifice not only the smooth-talking and seductive foreigner, but the attractive and well-meaning but over-confident hussy as well. [Full review]

Interesting terrorism study turns into an argument for racial tolerance and protecting constitutional rights. Scenes including the WTC towers however remind the viewer that history has not turned out the way Denzel's character hoped.

59.000

It lost me from the moment Denzel Washington delivers his usual tough-guy-peptalk ("Go and do what you do best"). Why don't you make a comedy, Denzel? Because you make me laugh.

This film is like a walk on a cloudy day ... occasionally the sun peaks out from behind a cloud ( in the form of Denzil Washingtons briliant performance) but most of the time it is gloomy and miserable. You hope for better things, but ultimately you are dissappointed. The acting is generally weak, ( Bening and Willis, in particular are terrible ) and the plot is well meaning but ultimately a mess. Caracatures are everywhere, and the idea of marshall law in NY is hideously badly handled.

Not bad.

Starts off brilliantly as a thriller about terrorism. Denzel Washington is great as the dedicated FBI agent trying desperately to locate a sleeper cell. The scene with the bomb in the bus is unforgettable. Then, somewhere along the way, the movie loses its nerve and the film becomes more and more compromised and implausible. It could have been a great masterpiece.

Disappointing considering Zwick is normally solid and it has Washington, Willis, Bening and Shalhoub.

Decent enough thriller ripped apart by an unbearable "MESSAGE!" third act. But still, in more than one way tragically prophetic.

Average all round.

Taking both controversy from the past(containment of the Japanese) and present(terrorism) and succeeds to some extent in delivering their message.

An okay thriller, confusing at times. Has some nice set pieces.

The siege in fact began months before the movie came out, with pre-emptive protests from the Arab-American community. The more reasonable areas of complaint would be the artistic ones of pedestrian plotting, stupefying fallback on action-film clichés (the slo-mo explosion, the slo-mo crash through plate glass, the slo-mo Dirty Harry-style solo heroics of the FBI chief at a hostage standoff), gaudy parade of high-tech gadgets, corrosive abrasive color photography -- but why go on?

Meh. Forgettable.

Mediocre movie with mediocre actors. And I really can't stand annette bening. She really is terrible..

This movie seems underrated. More people need to see it, Insha'allah.

This is probably better known than it deserves because it was about Arabic terrorist attacks in New York long before you-know-what. It's still a very ordinary movie that not even Denzel can make very exciting. Can't these Hollywood jerkoffs make a message movie in which the message is not SCREAMINGLY OBVIOUS?!

Something is wrong with this movie, but I don't know what.

intense drama

good

Pretty standard.

What isn't delivered on the action side is taken up in posturing about belief & patriotism, with some nonsensical political plot. To its advantage, Denzil really only comes off in goody good guy dramatic roles so this is perfect for him, since he's a week action vehicle. Idealistic nationalism promoting an end to racism while spouting other philosophical fragments creates a heady mix that works better than expected.

Suspenceful. Not a bad watch.

Denzel is inspiring as a patriot, Benning is intriguing as the compassionate one, Shalhoub is the example of blind prejudice, and Bruce Willis is...THE VILLAIN!!! Though it takes a little commitment to sit through, much like all of Eddy Zwicks movies, there are little payoffs along the way. One of the best "analog" movie explosions ever, plus an intense guns-drawn standoff that's up there with Reservoir Dogs with suspense. Watch it, at least once.

Heavy-handed, but watchable.

A well-done thriller.

Bleh.

Despite Bruce Willis, Denzel Washington and Annette Benning starring in this tense thriller from Edward Zwick, something seems very out-of-place about it.

Spookily prophetic.

I watched this movie a few years after 9/11 and it scared me so much beucase it was so right on, and it hit close to home. The movie's topic is very scary for this day and age