Amongst and Above All
GENRE
ACTION ADVENTURE DRAMA WAR SUSPENSE/THRILLER MYSTERY
Core Theme
JUSTICE, POWER
TIME PERIOD
Contemporary,2000s
COMPARABLE TITLES
OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN, JACK RYAN
CHARACTER LIST
EVAN HARRIS: M/30’S. LOYAL SECRET SERVICE AGENT WHO IS MOBILIZED TO TRACK DOWN PRESIDENT’S WOULD-BE ASSASSINS.
PATRICK STEVENSON: M/50’S. EXPERIENCED CIA OPERATIVE WHO JOINS THE EFFORT TO APPREHEND THE WOULD-BE ASSASSINS.
DAN EYAL (M/40S) -- SLICK MOSSAD AGENT WHO BECOMES ALLIES WITH PATRICK AND EVAN.
RUFUS BARKER (M/50S) -- PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES WHO FINDS HIMSELF UNDER ATTACK BY UNKNOWN ASSAILANTS.
KATARINA BELINKOVA (F/20S) -- RUSSIAN TEMPTRESS AND STUNNER WHO MAY HAVE VALUABLE INTEL REGARDING THE PRESIDENT'S ATTACKERS.
FRANK DABUSH (M/50S) -- FOREIGN-BORN FORMER ARMS DEALER WHO IS APPOINTED AS THE PRESIDENT'S CHIEF OF STAFF.
Logline
U.S. President Rufus Barker is thrown into the fire at his inauguration when an assassin takes out the First Lady and the Chief Justice. The FBI, CIA, and Mossad go into high gear to find out the motivation and intended target after another attempt takes down Air Force 1.
Target Audiences
Age: 35-54,18-34
Target Gender: Male Leaning
Setting
Middle East, Washington DC
Based on a True Story
No
Publishing Details
Status: Yes: with a Publisher
Publisher: Hildebrand Books an imprint of W. Brand Publishing
Year Published: 2020
Starting Description
A failed assassination attempt on the President during the inauguration that kills the First Lady and Chief Justice. The President has to fix problems of the last term, mourn his wife, and find out who wants him dead.
Ending Description
With the FBI, CIA, and Mossad working together, a plan is devised to trap the head of the group responsible for the assassination attempts. A meeting held in the Oval Office reveals the leader to everyone's surprise.
Group Specific
military, mossad, politicians
Hard Copy Available
Yes
ISBN
978-1-950385-19-5
Mature Audience Themes
Extreme Violence
Plot - Other Elements
Twist
Plot - Premise
Overcoming Monster/Villain,Internal Journey/Rebirth,Tragedy
Main Character Details
Name: Evan Harris
Age: 36
Gender: Male
Role: Protagonist
Key Traits: Badass,Masculine,Patriotic,Confident,Skillful,Heroic,Educated,Honorable,Leader,Strong Moral Code
Additional Character Details
Name: Dan Eyal
Age: 40s
Gender: Male
Role: Logical
Key Traits: Adventurous,Masculine,Modest,Charming,Sexy,Heroic,Educated,Honorable,Leader,Strong Moral Code,Secretive,Skillful,Blunt,Engaging
Additional Character Details
Name: Katarina Belinkova
Age: 30s
Gender: Female
Role: antagonist
Key Traits: Adventurous,Badass,Narcisstic,Complex,Sexy,Decisive,Secretive,Seductive,Educated,Unapologetic,Sophisticated,Skillful
Additional Character Details
Name: Rufus Barker
Age: 60s
Gender: Male
Role: emotional
Key Traits: Charming,Complex,Confident,Modest,Faithful,Patriotic,Leader,Educated
Genre
ACTION, THRILLER, SUSPENSE, POLITICS
Brief
After an assassination attempt on the President goes awry, a loyal Secret Service Agent, a veteran CIA operative, and a slick Mossad agent are mobilized to bring the perpetrators to justice. A globe-trotting adventure sees the heroes track down a mysterious figure known only as "The Chameleon," while the President is attacked once again in the Middle East. The truth eventually comes out and the mastermind is exposed in a tense, fateful Oval Office meeting in front of the President's cabinet appointees.
Overall Rating
FAIR
Narrative Elements
Authors Writing Style: FAIR
Characterization: FAIR
Commerciality: GOOD
Franchise Potential: FAIR
Pace: FAIR
Premise: FAIR
Structure: FAIR
Theme: FAIR
Accuracy of Book Profile
It is a fair reflection of the book, although it feels wrong that Dan, Patrick, and Evan are left out of the logline and short summary and that Patrick is left out of the development pitch.
Draw of Story
The high stakes-- This work starts out with a bang, constituting a memorable and consequential inciting incident. Where many works take time in excess to offer impact to audiences, this author takes full advantage of his opening pages.
Possible Drawbacks
There are a couple of things-- First, this work is challenging to a fault with how much it jumps around from different places and times in the first 50-60 pages. After the sure-handed opening, this functions to dizzy and complicate matters in excess. Perhaps there is a better way to lay out and introduce the many players without it feeling like a revolving door. For instance, wouldn't it be more suspenseful and efficient to meet Katarina in the ground in Moscow when Evan arrives? What are we really gaining from an early introduction when we have an opportunity to meet her organically as the story unfolds?
Use of Special Effects
THE STORY RELIES HEAVILY ON SPECIAL EFFECTS
Primary Hook of Story
The hook is that this work is a high-stakes, globetrotting thriller that seems to be in vogue in the marketplace. Aside from its genre and popcorn frills, this work seems to play into the growing societal fear of our leaders being corrupt and power-hungry. The themes, therefore, may resonate on a wide scale.
Fanbase Potential
This work could perhaps have a large fanbase, if adapted. The fact that OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN has generated two sequels bodes well for this work's commerciality.
Awards Potential
No, this is far from an awards caliber story. Action and espionage films that rely on action and spectacle like this work does do not perform well in awards season.
Envisioned Budget
LARGE BUDGET
Similar Films/TV Series
OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN, JACK RYAN
What’s New About the Story
Not much stands out as especially unique in this story, as it borrows many archetypes from genre entries past. However, what stands out as unique is the union between Secret Service, Mossad, and CIA. The heroes are clear-cut, hailing from very different backgrounds, and embodying varied and complementary skill sets. This stands out as an interesting element in the work at large.
Lead Characters
Evan stands out for his steadfastness and loyalty to the President-- qualities that govern his persona. He's an everyman and an in some ways by-the-books action movie hero, sure to be accessible to the audience at large.
Uniqueness of Story
While it certainly has a commercial appeal, this is not a rare gem, per se, as it seems to be encumbered a bit by its wordiness, its prioritization of plot over character, and its familiarity when A-B'd with similar genre entries.
Possible Formats
Film: Studio, Streaming TV Series: Network, Limited Run / Mini-Series, Streaming
Analyst Recommendation
WORK IN PROGRESS
Justification
This is a work in progress as the work seems to commit to its plot and genre elements at some cost to its characters feeling human, original, and relatable. Moreover, this work is a bit wordy and complicated, and it would benefit from some condensation and simplification. Last, this work offers little that feels profoundly new and unexpected, especially when compared to similar projects from the past.
Tips for Improvement
Another pass to condense, cut, and simplify some of the excessively complicated elements would uplift this work. Also, finding opportunities to more thoughtfully dimensionalize the main characters would help. Considering how to more profoundly differentiate from other 'White House/President in peril' projects would benefit, too.
Brief
After an assassination attempt on the President fails, Secret Service agent Evan Harris is tasked with tracking the perpetrators down. Evan allies with the CIA's Patrick Stevenson and the cunning Mossad operative Dan Eyal. They go their separate ways on globe-trotting missions, hunting a shadowy mastermind figure known only as "The Chameleon."
What We Liked
This work stood out for its high stakes and its commercial appeal. Make no mistake-- This work is all about the action and spectacle, offering no shortage of popcorn cinema moments that will surely satisfy fans of the likes of Olympus has Fallen.
Film: This could work well as a film adaptation as its concept has seemingly been proven already-- The fact that Olympus has Fallen has blossomed into a series with two sequels bodes well for this work. It has no shortage of action and spectacle that will surely draw the attention of fans of the genre.
TV: This could work well as a TV adaptation as it seems to offer a viable foundation for expansion. Many of the characters in this would benefit from the time and consideration afforded by long form. Moreover, this work has no shortage of impact and action to sustain episodes of TV.
Key points:
1. The uncommonly high stakes.
2. The many diverse, often scenic locations.
3. The abundance of action and impact.
4. The unforgettable and impactful inciting incident.
5. The trio of diverse, intelligent, and complementary heroes.
Synopsis
As President-elect RUFUS BARKER is being sworn in, gunshots ring out on Capitol Hill, killing both the First Lady and a Supreme Court Justice. Barker is ushered away by loyal secret service agent EVAN HARRIS, 30s, as chaos breaks loose. 18 months earlier, Mossad agent DAN EYAL, 40s, brushes shoulders with medics on the ground in Israel, witnessing a child and his family get injured by errant shrapnel. He agrees to help the child's parents JAMILA and FAROUK get resituated. 3 months before the Inauguration, we meet KATARINA BELINKOVA, 3os, a sexy Russian bombshell working in the American Embassy in Moscow. She meets regularly with a mysterious Russian man, DIMA, on the bus. A week after the assassination attempt in DC, we meet the unassuming Iranian man HASSAN ABU SHIKRI, 20s, a guard at the Smithsonian, hiding out in a safehouse rented by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards. We learn that two weeks before the Inauguration, masked men gained kompromat on Hassan by photographing him next to a woman they murdered. Thus, Hassan is forced to give them access to the Smithsonian's rooftop.
10 days after the attempt, we link up again with the president as he fills his cabinet, including MARCUS BARBOUR as CIA Director and FRANK DABUSH, a foreign-born former arms dealer, as Chief of Staff. At the CIA headquarters, Marcus puts counter-terrorism agent PATRICK STEVENSON, 50s, on the task of identifying the assassins. He links up with Dan Eyal and Evan Harris, who the President has released from his personal security to partner with Patrick. The men quickly deduce that Hassan, who has gone missing, was involved with the shooting. Evan works to track him down, while Patrick, Dan, and Marcus uncover a communication between Hassan and a figure known as "The Chameleon." Evan asks about Hassan at an Iranian religious building, and he is knocked off his feet by a massive car explosion when he leaves. Hassan manages to get a hold of a gun, and he kills his captors, while Evan is assigned a mission to Moscow, where he is to confront and perhaps kill Katarina, who is suspected of being a mole. Evan, Dan, and Patrick debate on Hassan's role and whether he was a cover for the true assassins. Evan recounts a destructive drone strike on a school, which might have spurred covert, retaliatory action from Iran.
Hassan's three victims are discovered, and Patrick helps interrogate the landlord of the safe house apartment that was rented under Hassan's name, trying to get a sense of where Hassan might be. On the ground in Russia, Evan confronts Katarina in her apartment. She tries to seduce him, but he knows she only fancies women. Evan drills Katarina on her communications with Russian intelligence, and Katarina convinces him that she is a double agent, working hand-in-hand with Marcus and the CIA. Soon, Katarina earns Evan's uneasy trust, telling him that her contact Dima likely knows who The Chameleon is. Just as they prepare to visit Dima, they cower from a barrage of bullets from the street. In D.C., Patrick visits the morgue to see the bodies of the three men slain by Hassan, and he espouses that they are Muslim Chechnyans. Meanwhile, President Rufus takes flight in Air Force One, but he and his entourage quickly find themselves targeted by missiles while over the Middle East. Air Force fighters come in to ward off the missiles, but the President's plane is eventually hit. The plane crash lands in the desert, killing several and leaving the POTUS in critical condition. All the while, Hassan has been hiding out in motels around D.C., careful to evade the road blocks and heightened police presence. Back in Moscow, Katarina and Evan evade what are revealed to be Russian contract killers, taking refuge in the U.S. embassy.
Thanks to Mossad operative Ben, Patrick works to mobilize a pair of refugees--Jamila and Farouk, who we met earlier--into the Muslim community in D.C., with hopes of gaining insight into Hassan and co. Meanwhile, while a physician tends to POTUS, Air Force One is surrounded and attacked by Jihadist militants. Thanks to a dedicated troop of Marines and diligent Air Force coverage, the Americans ward off the first wave of attack. Vice President Tom assumes the presidency under the 25th amendment, and the situation room operates to protect POTUS. Hassan heads to a Muslim cultural center using a fake name, but the IMAM recognizes him. The Imam is wary of Hassan, given what he is being accused of, but he invites him to stay with a new refugee family that just so happens to be Jamila and Farouk. With no other options, Hassan accepts. In the desert, after continued battle, a rescue operation is executed for the President and co. Meanwhile, thanks to Jamila and Farouk, the CIA locates Hassan, and they recover him after a tense hostage situation at the mosque.
Patrick follows clues gathered from the discarded assassination attempt rifle down to Colombia, tracing the path of the gun. He connects with an arms dealer and horse breeder, who tells of an unidentified gentleman who picked up the gun. Patrick waits while the source tries to figure out who the buyer was. At the embassy in Moscow, Evan and Katarina try to deduce who might have wanted them killed. Evan presses her on her allegiances-- Evidently, she has been working at the behest of the head of command of the CIA, yet Evan was mobilized to kill her if need be. Katarina tells of her contact Dima, who was apparently rubbing shoulders with the group that headed the assassination attempt-- The Chameleons. In the middle of the night, an attempt to rendezvous with Dima goes awry, and he is killed by a gunshot wound.
Evan and Katarina are smuggled out of Moscow and taken to London, where they are greeted by Dan and Patrick. On the plane back to the States, the group compares notes and findings, ruling out the theory of Jihadists trying to kill the POTUS. Soon, it becomes clear that the group has consensus on the suspected perpetrator and leader of the Chameleons. A meeting in the Oval Office ensues, headed by the POTUS himself. He calls in his cabinet to join Dan, Patrick, and Evan, and he outlines the theory of the motivation behind the assassination attempts. All signs point to Chief of Staff Frank Dabush--the foreign-born former arms dealer--whose only path to President would be with the President and Vice President dying, given that he was born outside of the United States. Frank, in the heat of the moment, seizes Evan's gun and uses Evan as a human shield, desperate to make an escape via helicopter. He shoots Patrick in the hip and trains the gun on the President while negotiating his escape. However, the lights go out, and Frank is quickly disarmed and apprehended by Dan. He's taken away by police while the others exhale and recover.