GUARDING TESS
A film review by Mark Takacs
Copyright 1994 Mark Takacs
Tri-Star Films / rated PG-13 Starring: Nicolas Cage Shirley MacLaine Richard Griffiths Classification: Comedy / Drama Tak Rating: see once as a matinee
One-Line-Summary
----------------
A Secret Service agent goes head-to-head with a tenacious,
spirited, former-first lady.
Tak Plot Summary ---------------- Secret Service agent Douglas (Nicolas Cage) is called back for a second three-year term at the Secret Service's worst assignment, guarding former First Lady Tess Carlisle (Shirley MacLaine). Fur flies as Douglas tries to enforce Service protocol, while Tess just wants respect and privacy.
Tak Thoughts ------------ As a fan Nicolas Cage fan, I try and see him whenever I can. I've also been impressed by Shirley MacLaine's acting. So I looked forward to their pairing. In GUARDING TESS, MacLaine's strong-willed character is constantly bucking at Cage's strongly enforced security rules and restrictions. GUARDING TESS's funniest moments come from this interaction as they constantly jockey and battle for the dominance.
There's also an undercurrent going on. They're fond of each other, but not to the casual observer. As GUARDING TESS opens, Douglas's term of duty is over, but Tess likes him enough to pulls strings and have him reassigned. When Douglas asks why she did this despite their conflicts, she replies, "Because I like you, Douglas."
Douglas is often frustrated by Tess's stunts, and the lack of more active assignments. The only action he has to deal with are ridiculously humorous excursions to the supermarket. "We have lost interest in peas, repeat, lost interest in peas..." When something finally happens, as it inevitably must, he is caught flat-footed. Which leads to a scene where a superior berates him, saying "Are you telling me that *seven* trained and heavily armed Secret Service agents can't guard one senior citizen?!?".
I laughed a lot during the first half of GUARDING TESS. But about two-thirds of the way through, it suddenly turned into a half-hearted suspense drama. The laughs went away and were replaced with serious-faced goon squads to try and solve the crime. Fortunately, the deviation into bad suspense-drama doesn't last long and GUARDING TESS redeems itself at the last moment by returning to comedy.
Tak Rating: ----------- GUARDING TESS is a decent comedy that turns into a bad suspense drama near the end. If you're a fan of either Shirley MacLaine or Nicolas Cage (like I am), you might want to check it out as a matinee. Otherwise, GUARDING TESS can probably wait.
avoid at all costs see several times (w/friends) as matinee
wait for videotape see once at full price
watch it on cable see it several times - full and/or matinee
X see once as a matinee see many times at full price
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mtakacs@netcom.com
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