DOOMSDAY GUN
A film review by Mark R. Leeper
Copyright 1994 Mark R. Leeper
Capsule review: Once again HBO's docu-dramas prove that there are good films being made for cable. The story of Gerald Bull and his attempts to build a super- gun for Saddam Hussein's pre-war Iraq was under-reported in the press, in spite of the natural fascination of the material. This film is a sort of TUCKER-meets-Tom- Clancy based on fact. Rating: +2 (-4 to +4)
I think I have a special fondness for HBO docudramas. They generally have a good feel for how to make recent history engrossing and dramatic. Whether they choose to base it on pre-existing material, as they did in last years adaptation of Randy Shilts's AND THE BAND PLAYED ON, or whether they write their own story based on research as they did with DEAD AHEAD, their quality is generally more than a rival for what is playing in the theaters.
With DEAD AHEAD they had their work cut out for them. This was the story of the Exxon Valdez disaster and the politics of what followed. It is not easy to make that material really engrossing, and they managed. DOOMSDAY GUN suffers from no such handicap. The story of Gerald Bull and his super-gun already has the makings to be Tucker- meets-Tom-Clancy. Add to that the fact that the story was really was under-reported in the press and you have a fairly engrossing piece of entertainment.
Frank Langella plays Gerald Bull, a child-man with a fascination with large artillery pieces and the engineering intellect to build the guns that he dreams about. His inspiration since boyhood has been Jules Verne's FROM THE EARTH TO THE MOON with its cannon large enough to send a shell and its passengers to the moon. The Canadian has built guns for the United States and many of its allies, including Israel, whom he helped to defend the Golan Heights. After a falling out with the Americans he decides that he will sell his services and that of his small organization to the highest bidder ("except the Russians"). The highest bidder turns out to be Saddam Hussein who is militarizing and fortifying Iraq. Alan Arkin plays an Israeli intelligence officer with the uncomfortable job of convincing a friend and former ally not to built his gun and place it in the hands of Hussein. Meanwhile Bull has to get the industrialized nations to build the parts he needs under the noses of their own intelligence agencies. Then there is the larger story of how much governments' intelligence agencies knew and even had complicity in the arming of Iraq.
If you go into DOOMSDAY GUN expecting CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER, you are sure to be disappointed. But if you are expecting a modest little made-for-cable film, you will probably be very pleasantly surprised. DOOMSDAY GUN ranks very well with what is in release in theaters. If you consider all the boxing matches and stand-up comics ad nauseum that made-for-cable fare is becoming on the "premium" services, DOOMSDAY GUN at least shows that some quality material is still being made. I would give DOOMSDAY GUN a +2 on the -4 to +4 scale.
Mark R. Leeper
mark.leeper@att.com
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