![[box cover]](../../reviewimgs/d/diplomaticsiege.jpg)
Diplomatic Siege
In what is possibly one of the most inane siege pictures ever, Peter Weller stars as computer expert Steve Mitchell, who drags his estranged and moody teenage son along the way as he engages in covert government assignments across Eastern Europe. During a critical mission at the U.S. Embassy in Romania, the place is invaded by ruthless Serbian terrorists demanding the release of a political prisoner, but suspicions abound that they may have intentions toward a secret atomic bomb on the premises. As a formula thriller, this one's a mess. Climactic plot points happen too early (the child-in-danger scene is in the first act!), heroic intentions are often unclear, crucial characters are introduced only when needed, and Tom Berenger, as Army general Buck Swain, sends his men into combat while he watches on a monitor in a van — hardly good use of a marquee player. All this muddle, however, lends a certain unpredictability which, combined with a sometimes silly sense of humor and rather scatter-brained approach to character, keeps director Gustavo Graef-Mario in the black for entertainment value. So anti-climactic toward the end, that it's almost refreshing, and the final note is truly bizarre, completely illogical, and totally unexpected. Simply not a very good movie, but how can you pan an action film in which the hero runs around with a wet towel on his head? With Daryl Hannah as Weller's sexy foil. 1.85:1 widescreen and 5.1 Dolby. Keep case.
—Joe Barlow
