The Siege [Blu-ray]

What makes this movie stand out is the characterization of the main players in a film that involves many factions. The series of terrorism incidents that are depicted pale in comparison to what has actually occurred since the movie was made, yet no military occupation of an American territory or city has transpired. There are clear divisions between the FBI, CIA and the US Army illustrated by the three actors Denzel Washington, Annette Benning, and Bruce Willis. The final confrontation depicting a power struggle between the FBI and US Army over jurisdiction is interesting, and a reason to be contemplative. If you pay close attention to detail when watching, you may learn more.

After seeing this movie again for about the 20th time, I finally decided to write a review. This movie is in my top 20 list of post-apocalyptic films (because I've also planned for a solar generator post-apocalypse :-). I love good suspense/mystery-thrillers if the plot is intelligent and the actors are great. I'd say this movie fits strongly in that last category.Since this movie was released almost 20 years ago, the other reason I'm writing the review is that hopefully, it catches the attention of people aged mid-teens to 30, who may have missed it first run. Those individuals who didn't even hit 18 before they had to contemplate a terrorist attack from a different culture, country - and in three places (counting the field in PA and Washington, DC) - have grown up in a country where they have had terrorism hung over their heads like Damocles' sword.This movie addresses that exact issue, presents a comparable scenario to 9/11, and shows the danger of isolating one group of people, profiling, waiving constitutional rights in the name of "keeping the US safe"...and how it falls to a few people to save us from degenerating into a police (military) state.Sadly, much of what the movie warned about has come to pass. In fact, only one thing hasn't yet- martial law; in its replacement, we have constitutional rights broken with being monitored ala 1984. The monitoring, however, extends to *every* citizen, while profiling continuous to be limited to citizens of Middle Eastern origin.The ongoing problems with the Middle East and the multiple US concerns about involvement, terrorism and security measures that have occurred in the 17 years after the release show this film's almost eerie prescience. The major actors in this film - Denzel Washington, Annette Benning, Tony Shalhoub, and Bruce Willis - are perfect in their roles.

1990s America would definitely act like this over terrorism, but then again Hollywood has a reputation to exaggerate, then again TERRORISM is still a very sensitive subject these days.

Met all of my expectations.

Will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat.

[spoiler alert] Yes, this film was prescient about the debates that would follow in the wake of 9/11 and the hysteria and Islamophobia that would infect our nation, but then, those debates already had clear lines drawn before 9/11, it's just that the actual attack on the Twin Towers mobilized both sides, and brought the freaks out to terrorize and brutalize random brown people. The fact is, in spite of its earnestness, it's just not a very well made film. Benning seems to me like she wandered on from another film shoot: maybe in 1998 this was a convincing portrait of a morally conflicted deep undercover middle east CIA operative, but after Homeland, this sort of thing looks weak: Benning looks and acts like she's in a 40s film noire not a 90s political thriller and the climactic scene where she is used as a human shield--Zwick makes sure he hits all the relevant memes--is just badly acted and choreographed. For instance, Benning acts as if she is shot at least a beat later than she should, making her fall unintentionally comical instead of dramatic. And Denzel Washington probably took this part so he could do the rousing defense of the constitution speech. As Benning realizes finally what Washington twigged in the first reel and which even the audience can't help being unsurprised by in the last, she says: "how could I have missed the play?" To which one is tempted to reply (this is, after all, New York): "I don't know, traffic?" Zwick can be an affecting filmmaker when the drama outweighs his didacticism, but such is not the case here. It's still worth watching though for Tony Shaloub's quips, Washington's always stupendous credibility, and the fact that you can match many of the film's scenes to future historical reference points in our post 9/11 America.

This has become 5 stars over the last 18 years as the questions it raised became real. The most surreal part---the occupation, within the United States, of neighborhoods with high concentrations of Moslems---is now very similar to the policies advocated by two 2016 Presidential candidates.When the movie first came out, some Arab civil rights groups attacked it as stereotyping Arabs and Moslems as terrorists. That was a serious misinterpretation of the movie, which is about fear and paranoia in a free society. There are terrorists who are bad guys, but even these are written as complex characters rather than comic book villains. It also has Tony Shalhoub in a rare dramatic role as an ethnic Arab FBI agent who shows heroism, disgust with terrorists, pride in his family, and ultimately anguish and anger over the detention of his 13-year-old son.We have not gone as far as the actions in this film, but despite this, the film is more optimistic than one that might be written today. There are some moments that are oddly charming as they reflect our pre-Sept 11th innocence. In the end, both FBI agents and the general public rise up against the un-American fear, anger, and authoritarianism. At this point in our history, we do not yet know if the American people will be as freedom-loving and compassionate as we are idealized in this picture.

super

Acheté pour offrir. Un bon film où Bruce Willis a un rôle différent de ceux auxquels nous sommes habitués. Je recommande.

In one of the scenes in "The siege" you catch a brief glimpse of the twin towers in the background and this film in some ways predicts 9/11 in that it is based on a series of terrorist outrages on American soil that starts with a suicide bombing of a busload of passengers, it continues with the bombing of a theatre and culminates in a truck full of explosives crashing into the FBI building in New York killing 600 people. This leads to martial law being declared, the army moving in when the politicians believe that the FBI are failing to catch those involved and the Muslim community being targeted in much the same way as Japanese Americans were targeted and put into detention camps in the USA after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour on 7 December 1941.It is exciting, thought provoking and very well made and Denzel Washington as an FBI agent, Annette Benning as a CIA agent and Bruce Willis as an army commander turn in great performances to make the film a memorable experience. Given how frightened and angry people felt after 9/11 it is not difficult to believe that something of this kind could easily happen if a series of bombings took place, it was difficult to find the bombers and the public clamour for something drastic to be done. The atmosphere of fear engendered by the continual bombings, the frustration of the law enforcement authorities as they try to apprehend the bombers is well conveyed in "The siege" and it can only be hoped that something of the kind does not happen in the US or here.

Confirmo el comentario de KARASUMA y CREEP en cuanto al idioma...sin embargo la caratula no venía con funda de cartón, al menos la que me llegó a mí...no tiene demasiada importancia. La calidad técnica de este BLU-RAY proveniente del Reino Unido es muy correcta; imagen con un aspecto muy "cinematográfico", no demasiado contraste y grano provocado, buena definición. Sonido DTS-HD MASTER AUDIO 5.1 en versión original (hay subtítulos en español) y DTS 5.1 en nuestro idioma...bien, todo muy bien. Extras muy interesantes: comentarios de EDWARD ZWICK (director y productor) y PETER SCHINDLER (productor ejecutivo), varios documentales consistentes en el "making of" de la "peli" y en el "tema"...¡vaya tema! En cuanto a la película en sí, en mi opinión no es la mejor de EDWARD ZWICK; "TIEMPOS DE GLORIA" o "EL ÚLTIMO SAMURAI" dejan el listón demasiado alto, pero es "gran cine". No encajo a BRUCE WILLIS en el personaje que interpreta, pero sin embargo DENZEL WASHINGTON no "sobreactúa" como tantas otras veces...en fin, el asunto de los actores es casi siempre subjetivo, todos los demás aspectos de la cinta son de primera.Lo verdaderamente recomendable de este producto no es tanto el continente, sino el contenido (...el "tema"), pero no voy a entrar en ello; los que no hayáis visto la "peli", dejaros sorprender, y los que ya la conozcáis...bueno, supongo que estaréis de acuerdo conmigo, o no....1998, transcurre el rodaje de "THE SIEGE", "ESTADO DE SITIO" como fue titulada aquí, con el "famoso" "Sky line" de Nueva York omnipresente en diversos planos de la película..."Sky line" incluidas las "torres gemelas" claro. Tres años después, 11 de Septiembre de 2001...LA REALIDAD SIEMPRE SUPERA LA FICCIÓN...y ya no habrá más "torres gemelas".Hay cosas en este "cochino mundo" que parecen no cambiar nunca; la hipocresía y doble moralidad de la sociedad occidental, su imperialismo opresor con la imposición de "su" sistema político-económico, todo ello confrontado a la desesperación y a las miserias generadoras de adoctrinamientos fanáticos y salvajes...es una historia intrínseca del ser humano que tantas veces se repite. A veces, incluso sin pretenderlo, una "peli" nos puede hacer reflexionar sobre todo esto, no se si "ESTADO DE SITIO" lo pretendía, juzgar vosotros.Os deseo muchos y buenos fotogramas...y ninguna bomba.

C'est un bon film sur ce sujet qui est malheureusement d'actualité avec les derniers Dramatiques & Effroyables actes de terreur Barbare qui viennent d'être commis sur Paris... Toutes nos Condoléances aux familles des nombreuses victimes. Les gens qui perpétuent ce genre d'Ignobles & Lâches massacres doivent être Combattus & Punis, cela est dans une fiction cela doit être dans la réalité... Il est dit trop souvent la réalité dépasse la fiction... Là, de nos jours Elle est Affreusement réelle... À voir & revoir pour ne pas oublier ce qui Est aujourd'hui & pourrait Être demain...