Opening

87% Star Trek Into Darkness May 16
24% Erased May 17
91% Frances Ha May 17
44% The English Teacher May 17
42% Black Rock May 17
77% Pieta May 17
—— Populaire May 17
21% 33 Postcards May 17

Top Box Office

78% Iron Man 3 $72.5M
49% The Great Gatsby $50.1M
47% Pain & Gain $5.0M
37% Peeples $4.6M
77% 42 $4.6M
56% Oblivion $4.1M
69% The Croods $3.6M
98% Mud $2.5M
8% The Big Wedding $2.5M
60% Oz the Great and Powerful $1.1M

Coming Soon

—— The Hangover Part III May 23
78% Fast & Furious 6 May 24
—— Epic May 24
94% Before Midnight May 24

Deterrence (2000)

tomatometer

42

Average Rating: 5.3/10
Critic Reviews: 12
Fresh: 5 | Rotten: 7

No consensus yet.

audience

56

liked it
Average Rating: 3.3/5
User Ratings: 1,010

My Rating

Movie Info

The world finds itself on the brink of nuclear disaster, with the balance point a small diner in Colorado, in the suspenseful political thriller Deterrence. In the year 2008, U.S. President Walter Emerson (Kevin Pollak), who recently took office after the death of the former chief executive, is campaigning for re-election. After winning the Colorado state primary, Emerson finds himself stranded in a roadside diner after a freak snowstorm. Traveling with Emerson are his chief of staff, Marshall

R,

Mystery & Suspense, Drama

Rod Lurie

Aug 29, 2000

Paramount Home Video

Watch It Now

Cast

ADVERTISEMENT

All Critics (47) | Top Critics (15) | Fresh (18) | Rotten (21) | DVD (8)

I got caught up in the global chess game, in the bluffing and the dares, the dangerous strategy of using nuclear blackmail against a fanatic who might call the bluff.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The plot twists fall about as weightily as the fake snow.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Top Critic IconTop Critic

Deterrence does serve up some wonderfully chewy pulp during its generally engaging 101 minutes, along with a certain vagueness of point-of-view.

January 1, 2000
Film.com
Top Critic IconTop Critic

The talk grows tired while the tension, alas, barely grows at all. And the ending is a cheat, pure and simple.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Top Critic IconTop Critic

It may be a little too dour, a little too self-inflated.

January 1, 2000
Film.com
Top Critic IconTop Critic

A nostalgic throwback to the all-male talkathons of the 1950s and '60s.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: Sacramento Bee
Sacramento Bee
Top Critic IconTop Critic

A president wrestles with another Iraq war.

December 22, 2010 Full Review Source: Common Sense Media
Common Sense Media

Lurie quickly glazes over one important bit of backstory in the early going, a point that is crucial to understand some motivation.

July 16, 2005 Full Review Source: TheMovieReport.com
TheMovieReport.com

Taut and intense. Pollak is outstanding.

March 26, 2004
Needcoffee.com

To it's credit, the film doesn't pull many punches . . .It really gets the message across that when you threaten someone with nukes, you'd better be ready to pull the trigger.

March 20, 2003 Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com
eFilmCritic.com

With a strong cast and smart script, Lurie conjures up an engaging scenario with little more than chicken wire and string.

October 24, 2001 Full Review Source: Flipside Movie Emporium
Flipside Movie Emporium

he exciting thing about Deterrence is that *we* are the big scary bad guy who is acting irrationally - and yet the conclusion explains everything.

June 15, 2001 Full Review

Only in Hollywood is ineptitude and crassness rewarded so richly.

February 14, 2001 Full Review Source: culturevulture.net
culturevulture.net

Audience Reviews for Deterrence

I really REALLY like this one. The premise is simple, in a snowed in diner in the middle of Colorado the president gets stuck on the way to an air force base. The possibility of nuclear war ensues.
March 13, 2011
kenstachnik

Super Reviewer

A very well made political drama full of suspense and intrigue. Let down by a poor supporting cast (Sean Astin) but held together by great performances from the main players. The ending will leave you feeling very unsettled indeed!
September 30, 2009
SirPant

Super Reviewer

No quotes approved yet for Deterrence. Logged in users can submit quotes.

Discussion Forum

There are no discussion threads for Deterrence yet.

Help | About | Jobs | Critics Submission | API | Licensing | Mobile