White House Down parents guide

White House Down Parent Guide

Regardless of political leanings, "White House Down" is the kind of summer blockbuster where you park your brain when you purchase your popcorn.

Overall C

The White House is under attack, and the life of the President (Jamie Foxx) is in the hands of a Secret Service agent (Channing Tatum).

Release date June 28, 2013

Violence D+
Sexual Content B
Profanity D+
Substance Use B

Why is White House Down rated PG-13? The MPAA rated White House Down PG-13 for prolonged sequences of action and violence including intense gunfire and explosions, some language and a brief sexual image.

Run Time: 132 minutes

Official Movie Site

Parent Movie Review

What happens when a marketing team collaborates with a political agenda? Well you might get something like White House Down, a script that sacrifices intelligence and logic in favor of endless bullets and an equal onslaught of quotable quips suitable for Twitter fans to tweet.

The story’s pacifist president (Jamie Foxx)—a black president with a beautiful wife (Garcelle Beauvais) that looks remarkably like the First Lady Michelle Obama—is attempting to secure a peace settlement in the Middle East. But his efforts at ensuring his place in history are threatened by his political opponents and the necessity of allowing daytime television talk shows to broadcast from the White House grounds. With his wife in Europe doing her part to promote her husband’s plan, President James Sawyer prepares for another day of wrangling on Capitol Hill.

Meanwhile in the lower chambers of the White House, John Cale (Channing Tatum) has just been unceremoniously dismissed from his job interview with the Secret Service. With his 11-year-old daughter (Joey King) in tow, he reluctantly agrees to join a visitors’ tour of the building. That’s when the explosions begin in the historic edifice. Separated from his daughter during the mayhem, John makes a heroic escape from a group of heavily armed paramilitaries who have taken control of the White House. Although he doesn’t find his daughter, John stumbles upon the President and takes it upon himself to lead the country’s First Commander to safety.

For all the President’s talk about weapon reductions, it takes a bazillion rounds of ammunition to restore law and order in this high action drama. Before the intruders even make their way to the Oval Office, they’ve left carnage strewn everywhere across Capitol Hill. While most of the killings don’t depict bloody injuries, the sheer number is staggering. Not satisfied to merely shoot their victims at point blank range, some characters are riddled with bullets and one young girl is repeatedly threatened with a gun.

Figuring out the bad guys’ motivations quickly becomes secondary in this film that appears to be more interested in seeing how much damage it can do to the president’s official residence and the irreplaceable historic antiquities inside. Sexual content is limited to a brief thermal image of a couple in bed together, but the script is riddled with profanities (including a strong sexual expletive).

Regardless of political leanings, White House Down is the kind of summer blockbuster where you park your brain when you purchase your popcorn. Why? Because the plot holes and flawed logic in this film are big enough to fly Air Force One through. Even as the country reels from the threat of nuclear disaster, this president still takes a sightseeing tour of the Lincoln Memorial with his helicopter entourage. Only in Hollywood!

Directed by Roland Emmerich . Starring Channing Tatum, Jamie Foxx, Maggie Gyllenhaal. Running time: 132 minutes. Theatrical release June 28, 2013. Updated

White House Down
Rating & Content Info

Why is White House Down rated PG-13? White House Down is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for prolonged sequences of action and violence including intense gunfire and explosions, some language and a brief sexual image.

Violence: Bullets, explosions and other brief weapon use are repeatedly shown along with beatings, stabbings and intense hand-to-hand violence. Some characters are shot numerous times at close range. Some bloody injuries including a gory gunshot wound are shown. A child is repeatedly threatened. Extensive property and historical antiquity damage occurs.

Sexual Content: A brief thermal image of a couple in bed together is seen.

Language: The script contains frequent profanities including scatological slang, terms of Deity, some crude terms and other swear words. A strong sexual expletive is used in an aggressive manner.

Alcohol / Drug Use: A woman drinks to calm her nerves.

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White House Down Parents' Guide

The movie’s makers encourage viewers to tweet their favorite movie line. Luckily the script is made up of easily quotable quips. How is the dialogue in this movie suitable for tweeters? What demographic group is this script aimed at? What other marketing ploys does the film use to attract young audience members?

How is decisive action by the U.S. government hampered by internal squabbling between departments such as the FBI, CIA and Secret Service?

How does this script use humor to ease the intensity of the action? Does it work?

Home Video

The most recent home video release of White House Down movie is November 5, 2013. Here are some details…

Home Video Notes: White House Down

Release Date: 5 November 2013

White House Down releases to home video (Blu-ray/DVD/Ultraviolet Digital Copy) with the following extras:

- 13 Featurettes

- Gag reel

Related home video titles:

Is this Déjà vu? This movie sports a similar plot line to Olympus Has Fallen, which released in three months earlier in March of 2013. Channing Tatum plays another hero in G.I. Joe - The Rise of the Cobra and G.I. Joe: Retaliation.