Review of The Ides of March (2011) by Kevin P — 10 Nov 2018

Strengths: For a political drama to work, it has to be tense, filled with complex characters, and well directed. This movie had all those things working for it. The tense moments were well handled throughout by director George Clooney. Clooney (Mike Morris) doubles with his solid acting, but the story isnâ(TM)t about him. Itâ(TM)s about the more complex characters. Ryan Gosling (Stephen Meyers) has a career filled with strong performances and this ranks near the top. Heâ(TM)s our hero, yet he never comes across as fully a good guy and ends the movie by basically blackmailing someone who is worse than him. There are a lot of shades of grey that work. Evan Rachel Wood (Molly Stearns) is fantastic, giving the best work of her career, while veteran actors Phillip Seymour Hoffman (Paul Zara), Marisa Tomei (Ida Horowicz), and Paul Giamatti (Tom Duffy) are all very good. Thereâ(TM)s a gritty sense of realism with everything that happens and I appreciated the way this ends on something of a cliffhanger.

Weaknesses: While Clooney handled certain scenes well, he doesnâ(TM)t excel as the director. Itâ(TM)s shot in a mostly bland style. Along with some of the shots, I felt the score, sets, and some of the little things like those aspects couldâ(TM)ve been improved. I wouldâ(TM)ve liked another scene or two for Tomei. She played well off Gosling, yet only got used for a few scenes. The movie can get a bit boring if politics arenâ(TM)t your thing.

Overall: A very strong political drama led by great acting, intriguing plot twists, and some truly tense moments.