Review of The Campaign (2012) by Nadine L — 22 Jul 2014

The Campaign is an uneven slapstick comedy about two polar-opposite candidates in a North Carolina district. Zach Galifianakis and Will Ferrell star as Cam Brady and Marty Huggins, respectively, one vying for an uncontested fifth term and the other a tourism director. Jay Roach, who directed the Austin Powers movies, is at the helm here.

Cam Brady is a slick ladies' man, but when he accidentally leaves a (shall we say) ribauld message on the answering machine of a devout family, his backers the Motch brothers think it's time some new blood was sent to Washington (on their behalf). Enter Marty Huggins, who displays none of the alpha-male characteristics one might expect from a politico, as his dad Raymond (Brian Cox) is an old hand at politics and a friend of the Motch brothers. Marty enters the race mainly to impress his jaded dad, who's always favored his other son Clay over Marty.

Marty's quickly in over his head, but help arrives in the name of Tim Wattley (Dylan McDermott), who's sent by the Motches to be Marty's campaign manager. Wattley soon has rearranged Marty's life (new dogs, new furniture, new wall hangings, new haircut for his wife) and has instilled confidence and even some ferocity into Marty's normally placid personality. This helps Marty in the first candidates' debate.

The Motch boys (Dan Aykroyd and John Lithgow) are patterned directly after the Koch brothers, real-life political cronies, with the same business-first mentality. The brothers' aim is to place someone in Congress who they can get favors from, such as tax breaks and other incentives for their various factories.

This is not a shrinking-violet movie. Whole lot of profanity, a lot of it funny and some of it even in good taste. The story may seem a little mean spirited to some - the trailer famously showed Ferrell's character punching a baby, sort of a no-no in politics - and truthfully there are times when the nastiness is a little over the top. Galifianakis and Ferrell are good enough to pull it off, but they can't work miracles. That said, there are some really funny scenes, including the debates, the fake commercials (which escalate in hostility), and really any interaction between the stars.

But the movie is also often too maudlin and melodramatic; too much that could have been funny or at least sweetly sincere is instead blown up, stretching our credulity even further. One thing about this movie certainly does ring true, and that is that Big Money can win a campaign.