The Ides of March So, since the last time we spoke, I went ahead and turned 28.. and I'm strangely comfortable with that. Here's why: when you're 28 you're unquestionably an adult.. hopefully with your shit together. But on the other hand, you're still young enough that you can do things like... sleep on a friend's couch all weekend and get black-out drunk without bringing too much of society's ire down on you. You're still a young person... but you have money. Unless you did dumb things like "buy a house", "make babies" or the like, that is. Based on a play, this movie was all over the local Cincinnati news in early 2011.. any conversation with a female resulted in a story of seeing Gosling or Clooney at some bar or hotel. From what I could tell, they shot approx. 80% of it in the greater Cincinnati area.. so, go Cinci. Oh, and Miami U gets to be featured in the first 5 minutes.. so that's legit. As I mentioned earlier, this one is based on a play, and you can definitely tell.. there are plenty of monologues and intimate settings with two or three people in a small room. Clooney wrote, directed, and stars in this one, and brought together an absolutely stacked cast... one could say it absolutely pays to be as well-liked and connected as Clooney is. Ryan Gosling, Paul Giamatti, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Jeffrey Wright and Marisa Tomei join Clooney in this drama about an ambitious and idealistic governor who seeks to gain the Democratic Presidential nomination.
The American political process is often referred to as a "sausage factory".. i.e., something that you don't really want to know how it's made because it's complicated, disgusting, and it's generally better to just enjoy and marvel at the final product rather than delve into the backroom promises, handshakes, compromises and devil's bargains that go into the finished product. Let's just say that there's a reason all of these bills are thousands of pages long: you do not want to know what's in there.. because it's mostly ridiculous items thrown into unrelated bills in order to pander to some congressman from Wyoming or Montana or god knows where. Most of you know this, or I hope you do. Well, actually getting elected to national office is no different. By the time a candidate makes it through a year of Primary battles and a general election, there have been so many compromises, backroom deals and promises that what once was the candidate's message has been utterly gutted by the realities of what it actually takes to get elected. The Primary cycle is especially messy.. with each state having differing rules and delegates and what not.
So in the week or so leading up to the Ohio Democratic Primary (which is on March 15, hence the title) in a world where Barack Obama evidently doesn't exist, Pennsylvania Governor Mike Morris, a charming, idealistic politician with some radical ideas on how to move the nation forward finds himself locked in a tough and increasingly dirty Primary battle. Idealistic young media man Stephen Meyers (Gosling), a rising star in the political scene, works on Morris' campaign, where duplicitous tactics and a campaign that's becoming more and more complex really reveal how on the campaign trail idealism takes a back seat to realism as the realities of what it takes to get elected sets in. Scandal, backstabbing and compromise take place behind closed doors as Political staffers and opportunistic politicians seek to gain a seat at the table. Power corrupts is a cliche.. but there's a lot of truth to it.. and around a Presidential hopeful, there's a lot of power to go around. People are lobbying for Cabinet spots, campaign workers are lobbying for what they hope will be high-profile and lucrative jobs in the future administration, and the Candidate himself is hearing a lot of different things from a lot of different people. In short, it's virtually impossible for someone to emerge from the long, messy process without some bruising and scuffing. This is a cynical, bleak film that says a lot about what the American Political Process is actually about. The business of winning has very little to do with the business of governing, and those best equipped to win are almost never those most equipped to rule.
All of that being said, this is a wonderfully done film. It looks great, and all of the actors involved bring their "A" game. Clooney is magnetic on screen, as he almost always is, and the film's weakest stretch comes during the 30 minutes or so that he's largely absent from the scene. Giamatti and Hoffman, are, as always, great. These are two of the top 5 character actors in all of Hollywood and they are both utterly believable and wonderfully bleak as opposing campaign managers, trying to stay ahead of their competition. Gosling, as the young, wide-eyed up and comer, makes a transformation throughout the film from idealist to cynic when the sausage maker is revealed to him in all its glory.. and he does a great job with a role that's written for the stage.. so there are lots of solitary moments and the role requires an emotional complexity that most young actors are incapable of. Marissa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood are strong as an NYT reporter and young intern, respectfully. Across the board, the acting is the strength of this film.. and you'd expect nothing less from an accomplished actor behind the camera.
All in all, while the performances are strong and the film really strives to reveal what happens behind the scenes at a major campaign (and Clooney would know), the plot at a point takes a leap for the somewhat ridiculous. I understand that scandals absolutely happen and the truth is likely shocking... but the places that this film goes seem needlessly over the top. That being said, as a parable of sorts and commentary on the realities of the American Political process.. absolutely worthwhile. Great, great performances by some of the strongest actors working today.
7.5/10.
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