Der Mordanschlag

Assassination stars Charles Bronson, the 1980s’ primary defender of the United State of America and its values on home soil, in another of his roles for Cannon Films. This time, however, the radical conservatism of his iconic roles is significantly suppressed thanks to the female element. Assassination is the seventeenth film in which Bronson appeared alongside his wife, Jill Ireland, though sadly it was also the last. By the time the film was made, the actress had long been battling cancer and exceptionally allowed herself to be persuaded to return to the silver screen. At the same time, the film fits into the numerous categories of Cannon Films projects with which producer Menahem Golan filled his scrapbook and expanded his filmography through collaborations with famous old stars. The picture’s narrative paraphrases buddy movies, as it pairs a veteran presidential bodyguard with the First Lady, which leads to a number of expected scenes on the theme of stubborn characters bickering with each other. Despite the laid-back scenes, however, Assassination fits in among the movies that Bronson made with Cannon Films by reinforcing the myth that traditional heroes simply do not age. Regardless of the fact that he was 64 at the time of filming, Bronson comes off as the prototype of virility – not only is he the toughest, hardest-working guy in the president’s security detail, who is adored by his young colleagues, but he is also the object of desire of his female colleagues who are a few decades younger than him. (11.10.2015)