Review of The Ides of March (2011) by Filmdilettante — 24 Oct 2011

George Clooney's new political thriller is both entertaining and thought provoking. Ryan Gosling plays Stephen Meyer, assistant campaign manager for Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney), vying for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States. Not only does Stephen excel in his role, but he is committed to the principles of Morris' campaign and believes him to be a principled candidate. However, through a series of Romanesque betrayals, Stephen evolves from idealistic staffer to political gamesman.

Ryan Gosling carries off the role of Stephen quite ably, but the most mesmerizing performance of the film is that of Philip Seymour Hoffman as Paul Zara, the campaign manager who chillingly delivers retribution for Stephen's costly misjudgments. Paul Giamatti also respectably portrays Tom Duffy, Zara's counterpart in the rival campaign, but unfortunately, George Clooney puts in a mono dimensional performance as Governor Morris to portray a candidate lacking in both personal charisma and dichotomy of character, so much so that when Morris' deep flaw threatening to derail the campaign is revealed, it seems a non sequitur. Marisa Tormei is effective as the journalist Ida Horowicz whose only loyalty is to a good scoop. Finally, Evan Rachel Wood is the pleasant surprise as the campaign intern who becomes a lightening rod for the events leading to the denouement.

In this day when so many actors also consider themselves political activists, Clooney's work in The Ides of March is most intriguing. Although the screenplay is based on former campaign staffer Beau Willimon's play Farragut North, which was loosely based on the 2004 campaign of Howard Dean, one cannot fail to notice the very clear parallels to the campaigns of Governor Mike Morris and that of then Senator Barak Obama, including the posters of Morris looking skyward, the vague but altruistic campaign slogan ("Believe") and the class warfare rhetoric of the stump speeches, but in his personal failings, Morris is portrayed more as Bill Clinton than Barak Obama. It is reported that Clooney held off production and release of this film in 2008 because the political climate in the wake of the Obama campaign was too hopeful, but in 2011 audiences are now cynical enough to be receptive. It's not only an astute commercial decision but an interesting statement about how Clooney perceives his target audience. I would like to give the average movie-goer more credit, but unfortunately, Clooney may be right. Mature observers have always understood politics is a high stakes game, and regardless of platform or ideology, only the most skilled players survive. Clooney seems to conclude that his target audience has now matured into this perspective.