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Year One
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
Absolute Power
Mixed or average reviews
Based on 21 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 3 votes
Read user comments
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Movie Info
Genre(s): Crime | Suspense/Thriller
Written by:
David Baldacci (book)
William Goldman
Directed by: Clint Eastwood
Release Date:
Theatrical: February 14, 1997
DVD: February 1, 2000
Running Time: 121 minutes, Color
Origin: USA
Summary
RATING: R for violence, sexuality and language
Starring Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Ed Harris, Laura Linney, Scott Glenn, Dennis Haysbert, Judy Davis, and E.G. Marshall
He was where he shouldn't have been, saw what he shouldn't have seen. But who'll believe the word of a career thief and ex-con (Eastwood) when he says he saw a woman killed -- and that the man responsible is the President of the United States? (Warner Bros)
Also On Metacritic
FILM: Bird Blood Work Flags of Our Fathers Letters from Iwo Jima Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil Million Dollar Baby Mystic River Space Cowboys The Bridges of Madison County True Crime Unforgiven
Also On The Web: Internet Movie Database Official Studio Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle
A first-rate thriller about arrogance at the top.
Read Full Review >Newsweek David Ansen
Eastwood is at his effortless, slyboots best and the film is as preposterous as it is delightful.
Read Full Review >Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan
Sleek and satisfying....Almost a drawing room thriller, unhurried and genteel but enlivened with suspense and surprising bursts of sly, even biting, humor.
San Francisco Examiner Barbara Shulgasser
Eastwood is perfect as the bad guy (a thief) you root for.
Read Full Review >ReelViews James Berardinelli
A fairly routine thriller that gets high marks as a result of tight pacing and top-notch acting.
Read Full Review >Variety Todd McCarthy
Eastwood is in good, sly form, once again delighting in a character's splendid solitude and singular skill at what he does.
Read Full Review >Time Richard Corliss
The warming, nicely played relationship of the burglar and his lawyer daughter (Laura Linney) is the source of the film's absolute power. [24 Feb 1997, p. 67]
The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen
The content is eminently forgettable but the thing has definitely got style.
Read Full Review >The New Republic Stanley Kauffmann
Flies into the improbable at its big moments. [17 Mar 1997, p. 28]
The New York Times Elvis Mitchell
Eastwood directs a sensible-looking genre film with smooth expertise, but its plot is quietly berserk.
Read Full Review >Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman
Glum and depersonalized, as if Eastwood couldn't muster the energy to guide us through this maze of improbable twists. [14 Feb 1997, p. 39]
TV Guide Maitland McDonagh
An old man's movie, filled with regret over things lost, corrupted and spoiled.
Read Full Review >USA Today Mike Clark
Eastwood gutsily stages the extended opening slowly and methodically... [But u]nintentional yuks litter an otherwise somber political thriller adapted from David Baldacci's novel.
The Onion (A.V. Club) John Krewson
A murky, often confusing story riddled with half-hearted performances, erratic characters, and too many cliched lines and situations.
Read Full Review >The New Yorker Bruce Diones
A sombre, boring little thriller based on David Baldacci's ridiculous right-wing best-seller.
Read Full Review >Washington Post Desson Thomson
Devolves into such utter ludicrousness, the best response (other than avoiding the thing in the first place) is to laugh.
Read Full Review >Washington Post Rita Kempley
Promises to speed up the pacemakers of grumpy old Republicans with its ruthless indictment of the unzipped presidency.
Read Full Review >Salon.com Charles Taylor
The embodiment of every conservative paranoid's slathering fantasies about Paula Jones, Vince Foster and Whitewater.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this movie is 6.3 (out of 10) based on 3 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Pat C. gave it a5:
Unusual premise, good drama in the one-way mirror scene, but eventually the film just drags and is unenlightened and predictable.
Steve H. gave it a6:
A promising idea for a film - a crook witnesses a crime, so who will believe him? - this rather runs out of steam, so that after an hour or so I was reduced to just waiting to see how they sorted it out in the end. Clint Eastwood, as usual, manages to make even a fairly stock character interesting, but in the end I couldn't be persuaded to care.
