Now Showing at Sawtell Cinema
The Ides of March
Rating: M Running Time: 1 hrs 41 mins
Session Times: Thu 2-Feb 5:15 pm, Fri 3-Feb 8:00 pm, Sat 4-Feb 6:30 pm, Sun 5-Feb 5:00 pm, Tue 7-Feb 7:45 pm, Wed 8-Feb 12:00 pm
Rating: M Running Time: 1 hrs 41 mins
Session Times: Thu 2-Feb 5:15 pm, Fri 3-Feb 8:00 pm, Sat 4-Feb 6:30 pm, Sun 5-Feb 5:00 pm, Tue 7-Feb 7:45 pm, Wed 8-Feb 12:00 pm
Synopsis:
Enthusiastic, media savvy but idealistic staffer Stephen Meyers (Ryan Gosling) is making his mark as media spokesman for appealing presidential candidate Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney), in the fight for Democratic nomination against Jack Stearns (Gregory Itzin) in the Ohio Primary. When Itzin's veteran and wily campaign manager Tom Duffy (Paul Giamatti) makes him an offer - and he has a fling with a Morris intern, Molly (Rachel Evan Wood) - Meyers clashes with the Morris campaign manager Paul Zara (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and gets a crash course in dirty, dangerous politics, which challenges his idealism.
Review by Louise Keller:
Idealism turns to disillusionment in this gripping political drama in which loyalty, principles and integrity tumble like a house of cards when betrayals alter perceptions. The details of the political process may be easier to follow for American audiences, but the essence of the emotions and motivations at the heart of the story are universally accessible.
Based on Beau Willimon's play Farragut North (inspired by real life events during Howard Dean's 2004 bid for the presidency), this is the kind of material for which George Clooney has a great feel, and which makes perfect sense for him - in the role of both director and star. But while the campaign is based around Clooney's Democratic presidential contender Governor Mike Morris, the film's focus is on his 30 year old silver-tongued whiz kid press secretary Stephen Meyers (Ryan Gosling).
Just like Gosling himself, Meyers is a rising star, believing in the cause to which he is dedicated. Idealistically, he thinks nothing bad can happen when doing the right thing. Meyer's campaign manager boss Paul Zara (Hoffman) is a stickler for loyalty ('It's the only currency you can count on') and believes any error of judgment is not simply a mistake, but a choice deserving no consideration. In the opposition's camp, winning is the sole motivation and the mantra for campaign manager Tom Duffy (Giamatti) exists. It is the actions and interactions between these three characters that play out like a tense chess game, as they deliberate on the big decisions that may make or break the campaign.
Clooney invites us to be the flies on the wall in the swirl of activity in the campaign backrooms, where interns like 20 year old bright, pretty Molly Stearns (Wood) jump eagerly to carry files, coffee or potential scandal. It is the burgeoning secret relationship between Molly and Stephen that triggers the sequence of events that poses not only potential risks for the Governor's election chances but also the fates of those around him.
There are lovely insights into the give-take relationship with the media, whose deadlines pose inflexible hurdles for decision-making. Marisa Tomei's NY Times journalist knows full well the meaning of so-called friendship: it's simply an exchange of necessary commodities.
Timely in the current political climate, this is a delicately coloured tale of changed perceptions delivered by a superlative cast. Clooney has gravitas etched all over his handsome features and Gosling shows once again that he can carry a film. Ambition has no bedfellows as this scorcher of a film shows, thrusting knife after knife into the raw nerve of the political process. Engrossing and unforgettable.