Deterrence

Episode 232: Deterrence (1999)

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Hosts: Oz, Curtis, and special guest Don S.

This week, Oz and Curtis are joined by special guest Don S. to dig up an underseen political "bottle movie" from the turn of the millennium. It’s 1999’s Deterrence, a film set in the "distant future" of 2008, where a snowstorm traps the President of the United States in a remote Colorado diner during a massive global crisis. Between chomping on an oversized ego-cigar and dealing with an Outkast-style "bombs over Baghdad" ultimatum, Kevin Pollack has to decide if he’s a world-class statesman or just a guy with four phones and a very stressed-out short-order cook.

The hosts break down:

• President Walter Emerson (Kevin Pollack): A "short king" commander-in-chief who treats a diner like the Situation Room and uses a massive cigar as a physical manifestation of his own hubris.

• The Diner Cabinet: A "blunt rainbow" of local patrons—including a pre-Middle Earth Sean Astin—who provide unsolicited geopolitical advice and represent every voting demographic known to 1990s screenwriters.

• The IBS News Crew: A television network with a very unfortunate acronym that provides the President with a direct line to the world (and a camera for his solo decision-making sessions).

• Harvey the Cook: A man who understands the nuances of a medium-rare burger and the tactical necessity of an elephant gun when the nuclear football enters his establishment.

• The "Teraflop" Technology: A technological fail-safe involving American-made duds and high-powered 90s computing that brings the movie to a conclusion both "ballsy" and arguably "cheating".

Enjoy Don’s take? Then check out more Don!

• Film Obsessive
• Every Movie Has a Lesson
• Cinephile Hissy Fit Podcast

Final Verdict:

Don — 4 Nuclear Footballs
Oz — 72 Cheeseburgers
Curtis — 83 IBSes