Review of Vice (2018) by John M — 02 Jan 2019

Pulling the strings. So this is the unsung story of Dick Chaney (Christian Bale), the Vice President during the George W. Bush administration. It tells his quiet rise to power, and how he ultimately positioned himself to be in a role that was more powerful than the President himself.

I deeply respect the work that Adam McKay is now doing; he spent the better part of his career directing Will Ferrell comedies (for better or worse), and now that he has paid his dues, he wants to tell these real life stories that lift the veil on ugliness that some would rather have forgotten.

Much like The Big Short, he has once again put together all the pieces to make a movie that is going to take home a lot of nominations and awards. Now I went in well-aware that this may be a movie that will leave you feeling some kind of way, and it did not disappoint.

It is currently a very tense political climate in the United States, and I feel like this movie exists for all the people out there getting rose-colored glasses for the Bush administration, viewing them as the good old days because so many processes are broken right now.

Those days really shouldn't be idolized when you look at what was really going on, and that is what Vice is all about. These are really some unflattering parts presented, and it ends up being an actor's movie; there is nothing sexy about any of these pudgy roles, but all of the actors commit and breathe a whole lot of life into the story.

Christian Bale is such an extreme actor, and while I bet it was probably a good time gaining weight for a role for a change of pace for this total transformation, he still puts in the work learning all of the mannerisms of a real life character.

Much like Frank Langella in Frost/Nixon, he doesn't look like a dead ringer, but he gets so much right that he completely becomes the person. All of the details that you hope to get from an Oscar contender are present, and this is most definitely in the upper echelon of movies of the year.

I think that the editing is particularly great and noteworthy, and it completely makes its point, showing just how slimy this got. The only small issue I take with this is the same that I had with The Big Short: it is sold as a comedy, but it is about a subject matter that really isn't funny.

It is pretty hysterical whenever Chaney has a heart attack, but other than that, this is a mostly serious story about a snake in the grass. It is still something that you absolutely need to watch if you enjoy watching award contenders.