Assassination (1987)

A presidential bodyguard is assigned to protect an objecting first lady, as repeated attempts are made on her life.

Director:

Peter R. Hunt (as Peter Hunt)

Writer:

Richard Sale

Stars:

Charles Bronson, Jill Ireland, Stephen Elliott

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Charles Bronson	...	Jay Killian
Jill Ireland	...	Lara Royce Craig
Stephen Elliott	...	Fitzroy
Jan Gan Boyd	...	Charlotte Chang
Randy Brooks	...	Tyler Loudermilk
James Lemp	...	Eddie Bracken (as Erik Stern)
Michael Ansara	...	Sen. Bunsen
James Staley	...	Briggs
Kathryn Leigh Scott	...	Polly Sims
James Acheson	...	Osborne Weems
Jim McMullan	...	The Zipper
Billy Hayes	...	Pritchard Young (as William Hayes)
William Prince	...	H.H. Royce
Charles Howerton	...	President Calvin Craig
Chris Alcaide	...	Chief Justice

Storyline

Jay Killian (Charles Bronson) had been a Secret Service agent guarding the President, but for the inauguration of the recently elected president, he is assigned to the first lady, Lara Royce (Jill Ireland). Lara, a perpetually indignant, arrogantly feministic lady, initially hates the methodical and rules-following Killian, and so she does all she can to avoid him and disregard his safety procedures. The story complicates when repeated attempts are made on Lara's life. Eventually, the shaken Lara decides to trust Killian's instincts and precautionary methods, and the pair embark on a difficult and often perilous cross-country journey, with the assassins close on their heels.

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Plot Keywords:

the white house | washington monument washington d.c. | assassin | bodyguard | first lady | 

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Taglines:

Only Jay Killian stood between the President's wife and assassination.

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Official Sites:

MGM

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 January 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

The President's Assassin

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,787,449, 11 January 1987

Gross USA:

$6,075,793

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$6,075,793

Company Credits

Production Co:

Golan-Globus Productions, Cannon Group, Major Studio Partners

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (TVC)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This is the biggest part for Jill Ireland in a movie starring her husband Charles Bronson. Usually cast as the ingenue or love-interest, she's the co-lead here as her character drives the entire plot.

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Goofs

Presidential inaugurations are in January but footage of the motorcade shows trees in full summer bloom and people in summer clothing.

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Quotes

Charlotte Chong: Are those pants going on or coming off?
Jay Killion: Going on.

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Connections

Referenced in Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films (2014)

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Soundtracks

March
(uncredited)
from Invasion U.S.A. (1985)
Composed by Jay Chattaway

User Reviews

Jay Killian is cool but Paul Kersey was better...

Bronson plays Jay Killian, a secret service agent who has been transferred from guarding the newly elected President of the U.S. to now guarding the new first lady. Eventually, Bronson learns that the first lady is being targeted for assassination (hence the title), the film for the most part deals with Bronson keeping the first lady out of harms way. Not really an excessive actioner for Bronson considering previous efforts from his career, meaning that it's a little light on the violence factor. Jill Ireland plays the first lady, who has quite a mean streak to her in the film, her snobby attitude makes quite a pairing for her and Bronson's character. There are some comical moments here and there throughout the film, Bronson has more dialogue than usual which is nice, he adds a little rare touch of comic relief althroughout the film. I would recommend this movie to any Bronson fan, it's not Paul Kersey, but Jay Killian isn't too bad either.