This remake was always going to struggle to match the excellent 1962 version, and although it is not nearly as compelling, it is still an half decent attempt. Liev Schreiber is acclaimed Gulf War veteran and now Congressman "Raymond Shaw" who is very much in the running for Vice-President of the USA - egged on by his even more ambitious Senator mother (Meryl Streep). Meantime, his wartime captain "Marco" (Denzel Washington) is recovering from an injury sustained during an ambush - only he is struggling to reconcile his memories of that event with those being put forward by "Shaw" and, almost verbatim, by his fellow soldiers. Upon more detailed investigation, "Marco" stumbles upon the most unique of conspiracies that calls him to question not just his own sanity, but the nature of events both past and present. The more he digs, the more doors close before him and pretty soon both he and we know that there is some sort of conspiracy that goes right to the heart of American democracy. The story has been updated from the original and that helps it to stand on it's own a bit more. Washington is effective, as is Schreiber as the plot thickens and the prospects of a terrifying form of psychological warfare begin to loom large, presenting us with a story of manipulation and power-lust that is distinctly Machiavellian. Meryl Streep does OK, but sadly her's is the role that comes off worst by comparison with Angela Lansbury from first time round. The former is undoubtedly an accomplished actress, but somehow she doesn't quite exude the same degree of toxic charm. It also really does take it's time to get going, but once in it's stride it offers us quite an intriguing, if wordy, look at just how the American political establishment might work, and how it might, equally, be up for shrewd exploitation. It's a solid effort and worth a watch, but original is definitely much more sinister and best!
They are around us. Everywhere. People talk about it, movies and TV shows talk about it, but what are UFOs? What do they want? And the most important question: what do they do in our daily life?
A man obsessed with conspiracy theories becomes a target after one of his theories turns out to be true. Unfortunately, in order to save himself, he has to figure out which theory it is.
Renegade FBI agent Art Jeffries protects a nine-year-old autistic boy who has cracked the government's new "unbreakable" code.
An American tourist in Greece finds himself on the run after a tragic accident plunges him into a political conspiracy that makes him a target for assassination.
The city is infested with mysterious parasites that bore into their human hosts to increase their host's power and sexual desires. A beautiful girl, Suzune Arizono is a vet with a specialty in parasites, and who fights daily to end the plague. Before long, she learns that an evil organization, the Kito Zaibatsu, is behind the explosive growth of this ferocious parasite. She also learns that her long-missing father, Dr. Arizono, is also involved. In order to crush the Kito Zaibatsu's ambition and to see her father again, Suzune takes on the fight without regard to the danger involved.
Richard Hanney has a rude awakening when a glamorous female spy falls into his bed - with a knife in her back. Having a bit of trouble explaining it all to Scotland Yard, he heads for the hills of Scotland to try to clear his name by locating the spy ring known as The 39 Steps.
After Dr. Bill Harford's wife, Alice, admits to having sexual fantasies about a man she met, Bill becomes obsessed with having a sexual encounter. He discovers an underground sexual group and attends one of their meetings - and quickly discovers that he is in over his head.
Angela Bennett is a freelance computer systems analyst who tracks down software viruses. At night she hooks up to the internet and chats to others 'surfing the net'. While de-bugging a new high-tech game for a cyber friend, she comes across a top secret program and becomes the target of a mysterious organization who will stop at nothing to erase her identity and her existence, in order to protect the project.
Threats from sinister foreign nationals aren't the only thing to fear. Bedraggled college professor Michael Faraday has been vexed (and increasingly paranoid) since his wife's accidental death in a botched FBI operation. But all that takes a backseat when a seemingly all-American couple set up house next door.
On the east coast of New Zealand, the Whangara people believe their presence there dates back a thousand years or more to a single ancestor, Paikea, who escaped death when his canoe capsized by riding to shore on the back of a whale. From then on, Whangara chiefs, always the first-born, always male, have been considered Paikea's direct descendants. Pai, an 11-year-old girl in a patriarchal New Zealand tribe, believes she is destined to be the new chief. But her grandfather Koro is bound by tradition to pick a male leader. Pai loves Koro more than anyone in the world, but she must fight him and a thousand years of tradition to fulfill her destiny.
When the President and Speaker of the House are killed in a building collapse, and the Vice-President declines the office due to age and ill-health, Senate President pro tempore Douglas Dilman (James Earl Jones) suddenly becomes the first black man to occupy the Oval Office. The events from that day to the next election when he must decide if he will actually run challenge his skills as a politician and leader.