Film Review: The Ides Of March

It seems somewhat felicitous that there be a film about the race to find America's next presidential candidate, although following the current Republican primaries one might certainly be able to mash all the footage into a political drama. Scratch that, satire. But what if Hollywood could elect the next Commander and Chief? No doubt the forerunner would be that genial, pulchritudinous man named George Clooney. If Mr. Obama were found to be slacking in his presidential duties, then perhaps the director, co-writter, star and appointed liberal ambassador for Hollywood might make a fitting replacement.

Stephen Myers (Gosling) is a campaign manager with ethical boundaries. A man who believes that the system will ultimately allow only those with the most sincerest convictions to become President of the United States. As such he carries out his work on behalf Governor Mike Morris (Clooney), a charismatic Democrat vying for the White House, with utmost conviction. But when revelations involving campaign volunteer Molly (Wood) surface, coupled with the increasing skullduggery of rival campaign manager Tom Duffy (Giamatti), Myers is soon embroiled in a political dilemma which will test his moral fibre.

The Ides Of March of course refers to that famed Shakespearean play where Julius Caesar's imperial ambitions were succinctly snuffed out by a gaggle of conspirators, and it is a familiar story here. First, this is a reasonably sophisticated, solicitous, well-crafted political thriller with a cast of heavy-hitters which impressively pull everything together. Yet while the political intrigue created throughout the film is certainly clever, like any political drama it features the predictable tropes we have come to expect of the genre. That is to say ambitious with allusions of intellectual grandeur, yet ironically broadly similar in its themes of political backstabbing and shady characters.

Speaking of characters, Gosling's Myers is a strange one - kind of like an enigmatic plankton inhabiting a world of political sharks. While portrayed as a sagacious spin-doctor who knows the tricks of the trade and how to work the media, he still remains curiously naive to the dirty realities he faces everyday. What's even more incredulous is how it takes a typical human flaw in Morris' character to set off an over-the-top chain reaction involving feelings of personal betrayal. Most flabbergasting of all the revelations to Myers however is that, shock horror, politics is not all unicorns and rainbows. Given all the perfidious political manoeuvres witnessed up until this point, you begin to wonder how this supposedly politically savvy wonder kid has made it this far and indeed, if he's even mentally stable.

In essence The Ides Of March is a Faustian tale in the same ilk as The Ghost Writer, Wag The Dog or In The Loop. While a popular concept these days given people's disillusion with politics, this is still very much a well executed film. It is a smart (enough), slick, efficacious effort with some fine acting which makes this more than worth watching. However, while the cast is excellent, the substance is as deceitful as an MP's expenses claim. Just don't be surprised that despite the glitz and soundbites, it doesn't make good on all its election promises.

Film Review: The American

George Clooney may command the adoration of millions of females around the globe, but he does not, err...command mine? Anywho, while I've never had any particular affinity for the man, a couple of films have made me reconsider my preconceptions of the heartthrob, notably Burn After Reading and more recently, Up In The Air. So, it was with an open mind which I stepped into the theatre for his latest outing, The American...

'Jack', or 'Edward' (we are never revealed his true identity) is a super talented, gun manufacturing assassin who botches a job in Sweden. Attempting to escape the repercussions of his failure, Jack/Edward flees to a small Italian town to recuperate and lie low. Once there, he takes on what he promises to be his last job as he works his way through a mid-life crisis and falls in love with the village bike.

Photographically, The American is stunning. Opening in a Swedish winter wonderland and continuing with spectacular shots of mountainous Italian countryside, you might be forgiven for thinking you were watching an extended screening for a car advert. But the scenery is more than that. It is symbolic of Jack/Edward's midlife crisis, his life, his existence and indeed his hopes and wishes. For a film which features very little in the way of dialogue, it is pictures which are left to speak louder than words. Much of the film for example consists of following Jack/Edward go about his business quietly, portraying the otherwise ruthless assassin as a lonely, even gentil lost soul.

Yet, this becomes so glaringly obvious within the first twenty minutes that you wish the film would just move forward. Instead, it seems that director Anton Corbijn feels the need to hammer the point of the isolated existence of an assassin facing an existential crisis, so much so that the audience is treated to a full 105mins of George Clooney wandering aimlessly around Italian countryside. It becomes somewhat tedious watching what essentially amounts to a silent film punctuated with the occasional gunshot. Even though the scenes of Italian terrain are beautiful, these 'master shots' become so patently over used that their meaning becomes lost.

Indeed, Corbijn's film is self-indulgent and pretentious. Attempts to build tension are underwhelming and  one could see the ending a mile off. If the film had actually gone somewhere and was not so cliched, it might be forgiven for consistently ramming down one's throat that this is a film about a man with a troubled conscience. Instead, what we're left with is yet another film where George Clooney is facing a mid-life crisis, a role in which he seems to exclusively specialise in these days.