Title: W. (2008)Starring: Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Banks, Richard Dreyfuss
Directed By: Oliver Stone
Director Oliver Stone's George W. Bush biopic is a well-written and expertly crafted account of one man's troubled life spent trying to escape his family's shadow. It has one of the best ensemble casts I've seen in a long time, all anchored by a stirring and convincing performance by Josh Brolin. His W. doesn't feel inauthentic. This is a living, changing portrayal of a man who, politics aside, has achieved great things almost by accident.
There are a few glaring issues with this film when taken on merits of historical accuracies. Some things that were said publicly during Presidential addresses are worked into smaller, private conversations in this story. W.'s time in Texas is summed up in spurts, but doesn't really focus on the transitions between jobs or the process by which he ran his various early political campaigns.
Story issues aside (since this is just a movie and therefore can't show everything), I also had problems with some of the editing choices. The story is presented in flashback form, which is fine, except in some cases we're given a cliffhanger in the present only to be taken to a flashback and then return to a different time in the present with no resolution. It became jarring at times, especially in a 2+ hour film. If at any point what we're transitioning to isn't as interesting as what we just left, the film begins to drag.
The aforementioned cast is pretty terrific here. This is one of those movies where you can play "Oh look there's so-and-so!" for almost the entire duration of the film. I was particularly pleased with Jeffrey Wright's performance as Colin Powell. He handles the role in the present and in flashbacks with a sense of nobility and pride. I was, however, not so pleased with Thandie Newton's portrayal of Condoleezza Rice. She definitely looked the part, and she had the voice for the most part. But whenever she's required to speak more than a line or two in succession, it just starts to sound like a stale, forced impression. I kept expecting someone to pop up from the background and scream "LIVE FROM NEW YORK, IT'S SATURDAY NIGHT!" That certainly didn't help the dragging-on factor.
I do recommend this movie because, honestly, it's Oliver freakin' Stone! The man knows how to handle political intrigue and Presidential legacies. Josh Brolin only adds to that with a sincere performance that never feels belittling. Just be mentally prepared for some long parts, and know that they won't last too long.
Score: 7.5/10
I definitely want to get around to seeing this one, and partly because it looked like a pretty fair take on his life upon first hearing about it. When most impressions you get of public figures come from weekly spoofs and razzing on a daily basis, it becomes hard to separate the cartoon from an honest illustration of that someone's actual life. Biopics are hard to do correctly, and based on your rundown, it sort of makes me wish that they had gone with a linear timeline rather than jumping back and forth, but hey, you need SOME other reason to keep watching.
ReplyDeleteI'm definitely not a fan of the man's politics, but a biopic on the twilight of his two presidential terms seems a fitting end. I actually want to someday watch JFK, and actually, as hard as it is to believe, I've never seen a single one of Stone's movies. I don't know why, it just worked out that way, but that should change soon.