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 The Guardian 

What grade would you give this film?
A 13%  13%  [ 1 ]
B 63%  63%  [ 5 ]
C 25%  25%  [ 2 ]
D 0%  0%  [ 0 ]
F 0%  0%  [ 0 ]
I don't plan on seeing this film 0%  0%  [ 0 ]
Total votes : 8

 The Guardian 
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College Boy Z

Joined: Mon Oct 11, 2004 8:40 pm
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Post The Guardian
The Guardian

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The Guardian is a 2006 action-adventure drama film starring Kevin Costner, Ashton Kutcher, and Melissa Sagemiller. The film was released on September 29, 2006, and was directed by Andrew Davis, director of The Fugitive. The setting for the film is the United States Coast Guard and their Aviation Survival Technician (AST) program.


Thu Sep 21, 2006 4:03 pm
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THE GUARDIAN utilizes a tried-and-true film formula (two people, one at the end of his/her life and the other the beginning, who rise above their differences and teach each other a meaningful lesson) which can be applied to almost any setting or situation. Here, it's the world of Coast Guard Rescue Swimmers. Kevin Costner is the seasoned veteran. Ashton Kutcher is the hotshot newcomer. The story follows their tense relationship as they go from feuding teacher and student to dedicated colleagues and culminates in a nail-biting search-and-rescue action sequence set in the Bering Sea.

The screenplay is unspectacular as it never diverts from the expected formula, but it does do a fine job of blending action and drama into a satisfying whole. Andrew Davis' direction is better. After rising to fame with the Academy Award winning THE FUGITIVE, he did a series of disappointments, including CHAIN REACTION, COLLATERAL DAMAGE, and HOLES. Here, however, he returns to form and creates a film with a fast pace and stylish action.

Performances are across-the-board good. Kevin Costner might be a tad out-of-shape and over the hill to be playing a character who jumps out of helicopters and swims against violent currents everyday, but his natural charisma shines through regardless and we come to sympathize with his hard-edged character. Ashton Kutcher is also decent, giving a charming and energetic performance. Mr. Demi Moore once again proves he's a gifted actor underneath the built-for-MTV exterior. Of the rest of the performances, I'll give a shout-out to rising star Melissa Sagemiller, who brings warmth to her thin love interest role.

Despite being slightly overlong at two hours and fifteen minutes and swimming along an expected, pat trajectory, I recommend THE GUARDIAN because it's a rousing tribute to heroes which comes complete with nice performances, superlative action sequences, and, best of all, a good, well-intentioned heart. B+.

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Fri Sep 22, 2006 9:01 am
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Gunslinger pretty much nailed it. It was somewhat formulaic, and the trailer gave away the basic structure of the movie, but I don't mind. I don't mind if a movie is cliche too much as long as it's good; afterall, a cliche became cliche for being or doing something very well. What the trailer didn't give away, though, is the heart of the movie and the great characters. The two hour plus runtime is evident while you're watching, though not as much as most would assume. My gripes with the film is that it seemed like it introduced too many secondary characters without really much characterization on them. Ashton Kuthcer actually did quite a great performance here, widening his dynamic range as an actor from bland to very passabe and likable. No Oscar, although I felt connected to his character, Jake Fischer, rather than to Ashton Kuthcer in a movie. Kevin Costner does well, as is to be expected. Perhaps a bit to stark at points, but that's probably due more to his character than his acting. As gunslinger said, the movie has nice performances, good action sequences, and wodnerful awe-inspiring heart. It really helped me appreciate the sacrifices some people make for the greater good of safety and life. And I'd be lying if I said the ending didn't hit me on an emotional level. A-

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Sat Sep 30, 2006 4:49 pm
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Gunslinger wrote:
THE GUARDIAN utilizes a tried-and-true film formula (two people, one at the end of his/her life and the other the beginning, who rise above their differences and teach each other a meaningful lesson) which can be applied to almost any setting or situation. Here, it's the world of Coast Guard Rescue Swimmers. Kevin Costner is the seasoned veteran. Ashton Kutcher is the hotshot newcomer. The story follows their tense relationship as they go from feuding teacher and student to dedicated colleagues and culminates in a nail-biting search-and-rescue action sequence set in the Bering Sea.

The screenplay is unspectacular as it never diverts from the expected formula, but it does do a fine job of blending action and drama into a satisfying whole. Andrew Davis' direction is better. After rising to fame with the Academy Award winning THE FUGITIVE, he did a series of disappointments, including CHAIN REACTION, COLLATERAL DAMAGE, and HOLES. Here, however, he returns to form and creates a film with a fast pace and stylish action.

Performances are across-the-board good. Kevin Costner might be a tad out-of-shape and over the hill to be playing a character who jumps out of helicopters and swims against violent currents everyday, but his natural charisma shines through regardless and we come to sympathize with his hard-edged character. Ashton Kutcher is also decent, giving a charming and energetic performance. Mr. Demi Moore once again proves he's a gifted actor underneath the built-for-MTV exterior. Of the rest of the performances, I'll give a shout-out to rising star Melissa Sagemiller, who brings warmth to her thin love interest role.

Despite being slightly overlong at two hours and fifteen minutes and swimming along an expected, pat trajectory, I recommend THE GUARDIAN because it's a rousing tribute to heroes which comes complete with nice performances, superlative action sequences, and, best of all, a good, well-intentioned heart. B+.


Thats a review from Rottentomatoes, I'm confused by that.

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Sun Oct 01, 2006 2:42 pm
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A nice movie. It drags a bit during all of the training sequences but that's ok. It has likeable characters, Kostner and Kutcher did very well and the ending was pretty good too. B


Tue Oct 24, 2006 8:15 am
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Good movie, yeah full of cliches and way too predictable but it was very entertaining . Great performances, i think this is Kutcher's best.

B


Sun Apr 01, 2007 4:11 pm
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I'm glad they didn't go with the alternate ending. None of my friends agreed, but Costner HAD to die for the movie to mean something far more.


Sun Apr 01, 2007 4:51 pm
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B.

Very solid film but nothing great. I think the movie should have ended after graduation though.


Sun Apr 01, 2007 5:07 pm
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Post Re: The Guardian
Maybe its because I find this type of life saving less interesting, I didn't like it that much. Costner was good, Kutcher was Kutcher (Or at least the most tamed he's ever been, but still pretty terrible) Apart from that average and predictable

B-

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Mon Feb 11, 2008 7:25 pm
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Post Re: The Guardian
This movie really surprised me. Cliched? Definitely. But it kept me interested throughout its entire two-hour, sixteen-minute running time. Nice work from both Ashton Kutcher and (especially) Kevin Costner.

Grade: B

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Mon Feb 11, 2008 9:27 pm
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Post Re: The Guardian
I do like films about niche services like the coast guard, and this was fine. But it's quite long and too generic. Its runtime is definitely earned as it packs a lot in. But the weak links are some of the plot developments, and Kutcher. He's ok at the school because he fits the cocky overachiever well, but as a real coast guard he is out of place. Him consistently shouting "oo-ah" was cringe-worthy. Also, while I enjoyed the training segment more than the rescues, they seemed to just teach them about attitude and withstanding cold and being a strong swimmer, nothing about procedure or technical knowledge. And that final scene where Kutcher thinks Randall might still be alive like some mythical Aquaman...is silly. But Costner is as ever, always watchable.


Wed May 22, 2019 6:44 pm
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KJ's Leading Idiot

Joined: Thu Dec 31, 2009 8:15 pm
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Post Re: The Guardian
I didn't love this as much others at KJ. The production values are poor which is surprising for a movie with so many graphics and great cast. Costner (as always) is great here but it was pretty much clear from the get go that his character will die. Kutcher is out of place here and while I liked the academy bits anything outside of that specially the love story was just shoehorned in here. I was most disappointed with the ending rescue scenes because it was supposed to be emotional but ends up generic trope of a character dying.


Tue Jul 21, 2020 4:31 am
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