Featuring an all-star ensemble and a real to life story involving dirty politics, many people have been looking forward to George Clooney's The Ides of March for quite some time. Well, the wait was definitely worth it.
Telling the story of Stephen Myers, a political campaign staffer who is given a quick lesson in dirty politicking, the film is able to successful straddle the line between being entertaining and politically motivated. While the Democratic Party is the focus of the film, and many real life issues are brought up, the answers were never the center of attention. Instead the film focuses on the characters as they weave in and out of the spotlight, all for the betterment of their team.
Ryan Gosling, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Evan Rachel Wood and George Clooney bring their A game as members of two opposing campaigns. The film takes you inside the world of crafty dealmaking and heavy mind games as each accepts the kill-or-be-killed lifestyle of a political campaign advisor.
The drama feels as if it were pulled from the New York Times headlines as we witness an all too authentic story unfold that involves a delegate and his intern. The ending is anything but familiar, but in a world where power and money rule supreme, a 'Based on a True Story' byline would not have been surprising.
The film thrives on its fluidity, accumulating to the big reveal that seemed almost too real to be true. The characters are authentic, the situations legitimate, and by the end of it I hated that it had to end.
While I'm not a fan of politics I did find the film fascinating on nearly every level. With several Oscar nominations sure to be on the horizon, The Ides of March is a great find for older, mature audience members. By the end of it you will likely have a new insight into the world of politics. Whether the process represented is true or not - that is what the campaign advisors will be working overtime to ensure we never find out.
