''Assassination'' is a 1987 American

action thriller film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...

directed by Peter Hunt and starring

Charles Bronson Charles Bronson (born Charles Dennis Buchinsky; November 3, 1921 – August 30, 2003) was an American actor. He was known for his roles in action films and his "granite features and brawny physique". Bronson was born into extreme poverty in ...

Jill Ireland Jill Dorothy Ireland (24 April 1936 – 18 May 1990) was an English actress and singer. Early life Ireland was born in Hounslow, South West London, England. She was the daughter of a wine importer. She was educated at Chatsworth Junior School i ...

, Charles Howerton, Jan Gan Boyd, Stephen Elliott, and Chris Alcaide. The plot is about a

bodyguard A bodyguard (or close protection officer/operative) is a type of security guard, government law enforcement officer, or servicemember who protects an very important person, important person or group of people, such as high-ranking public offic ...

who is assigned to protect the

First Lady of the United States First Lady of the United States (FLOTUS) is a title typically held by the wife of the president of the United States, concurrent with the president's term in office. Although the first lady's role has never been Code of law, codified or offici ...

against an assassination plot.

Plot

Jay Killian is a senior member of the

Secret Service A secret service is a government agency, intelligence agency, or the activities of a government agency, concerned with the gathering of intelligence data. The tasks and powers of a secret service can vary greatly from one country to another. For i ...

. On the day before the Inauguration of the new president, Killian has just returned from a six-week sick leave. He is given a new assignment: to protect the First Lady, Lara Royce Craig. Being highly qualified and a seasoned veteran of the service, Killian is dismayed that he is not on the Presidential detail. To make matters worse, Lara proves to be an extremely difficult charge. She is arrogant, condescending, demanding, and she detests the presence of Killian. With the First Lady doing what she wants and ignoring all of Killian's suggestions, it becomes apparent that someone wants Lara dead, especially when a biker tries to shoot her. A wild cross-country adventure ensues as Killian attempts to protect Lara and flush out the assassin and his contractor—and the assassination attempts may have originated from the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

. It turns out that, because of a war injury, the President is impotent and his wife is about to file for divorce at the end of his first term. Believing that the divorce will eliminate the chances of another term, the president's co-conspirators staged the assassination attempts, to keep the President's impotence a secret and gain him the people's support in his grief. Killian is able to unravel the conspiracy.

Cast

as Agent Jay Killian *

as First Lady Lara Royce Craig * Stephen Elliott as Fitzroy * Jan Gan Boyd as Charlotte Chang * Randy Brooks as Tyler Loudermilk * James Lemp as Eddie Bracken *

Michael Ansara Michael George Ansara (; April 15, 1922 – July 31, 2013) was an American actor. A Syrian-American, he was often cast in Arabic and American Indian roles. His work in both film and television spanned several genres including historical epic ...

as Senator Hector Bunsen * James Staley as Briggs *

Kathryn Leigh Scott Kathryn Leigh Scott is an American television and film actress and writer who is best known for playing several roles on ''Dark Shadows''. Early life and education Kathryn Leigh Scott (born Marlene Kathryn Kringstad) was born of Norwegian de ...

as Polly Sims *

Jim McMullan James P. McMullan (October 13, 1936 – May 31, 2019) was an American actor from Long Island, New York, best known for his role as Dr. Terry McDaniel on the 1960s series ''Ben Casey'' and as Senator Andrew Dowling on the CBS primetime soap ope ...

as The Zipper * William Prince as H.H. Royce * Charles Howerton as President Calvin Craig * Chris Alcaide as Chief Justice * Robert Dowdell as Captain "Cappy" Ogilvie

Production

Development

The film was Jill Ireland's first in three years following an operation for breast cancer. (Ireland had been co-producer on ''Murphy's Law''.) "I was terribly grateful to Menahem and Yoram for wanting me for the part," Ireland said. "I'd thought the cancer might have ended my acting career. They asked me to do the film at my birthday party last year and it was the best present I could have received. It validates the fact that I'm working, feeling good, looking good and able to spend long hours on the set. I think my return to work proves, at least to me, that there is life after cancer." It was originally called ''My Affair With the President's Wife'', then ''The President's Wife'', ''The Assassin'' and finally, ''Assassination''. The film's producer Pancho Kohner wanted the film called ''The President's Wife'' and as "far as we're concerned, it's not going to be called anything else." A Cannon spokesman said "There was some concern that `Assassin' might have a negative connotation and the crew might not get cooperation-people in Washington are worried about terrorism." "Someone thought the original title might be insulting to the presidency of the United States, so they changed it," said Bronson "There's an assassination involved so they stuck with that. They didn't want to scare off people who come to see my films with a title like President's Wife. It's not what people expect from one of my pictures."

Filming

The film was shot in May 1986. Ireland says the first week "everyone was solicitous" but after that she was "treated like everyone else."

Reception

Box office

The film opened at number six at the US box office, earning $2.8 million in its first week.Murphy movie still top draw at box office: INAL EditionThe Ottawa Citizen 14 Jan 1987: D15.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Assassination (1987 Film) 1987 films 1980s English-language films Golan-Globus films American political thriller films American action thriller films 1987 action thriller films Films directed by Peter R. Hunt Films scored by Robert O. Ragland 1980s political thriller films 1980s American films English-language action thriller films