2018’s Vice,
written and directed by Adam McKay.
Starring Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Sam Rockwell, Steve
Carrell, Alison Pill, Eddie Marsan, Shea Whigham, Tyler Perry, and Jesse
Plemons.
Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture, Best
Director (Adam McKay), Best Actor (Christian Bale), Best Supporting Actress
(Amy Adams), Best Supporting Actor (Sam Rockwell), Best Editing (Hank Corwin),
Best Makeup/Hair (Greg Cannom, Kate Biscoe and Patricia Dehaney), and Best
Original Screenplay (Adam McKay).
What is it about?
Vice tells the
story of the 43rd presidency of the United States’ Vice President,
Richard “Dick” Cheney (played by Christian Bale). Throughout, we see how Dick
and his wife, Lynn Cheney (played by Amy Adams), come to power in the White House
and the circumstances surrounding his ascendency to become possibly the most
powerful man for the better part of the first decade of the 2000’s.
Why is it worth seeing?
Vice feels like
the movie writer/director McKay has been building towards his whole career.
While he was cutting his teeth making successful Hollywood comedies (Anchorman, Talladega Nights, and Step
Brothers), the 43rd POTUS and his shadowy vice president were
creating plenty of chicanery fodder for political documentaries and comedians
alike. McKay first indicated there was a political dissident hiding behind his
jester status in the end credits of 2010’s The
Other Guys, where he displayed a sharp eye for explaining how the economic
collapse of 2008 was created willingly by a well connected group of billionaire
A-holes with the complicity of the political system. It was a promising start
to him trying out material detailing true life events through a sharp eye for
humour.
McKay is first and foremost a comedic director- besides the
resume, even his more “serious” works such as The Big Short and Vice
are told with a joker’s grin- “Just look at what these maniacs are getting away
with!” For the uninitiated, despite being a Senator at one point, Cheney was
more of a corporate guy at his firm, Halliburton, who once sworn in as Vice
President was rumoured to have more of a hand in the country’s response to 9/11
and the subsequent invasion of Iraq than the president himself (amongst the
usual resume of republican grandstanding and hypocrisy)- for what were
(illegal) business reasons. Revealing (somewhat) of the backstory of Cheney
(and his wife, Lynn Cheney), McKay fills us in how it all came to be (again, somewhat).
Therein lies the rub. Is it possible to make a decent (pseudo)
biopic about a man who is so unlikable? Cheney was a family man (which can be
refreshing for a party of hypocrites), so nepotism ahoy, but other than that he
doesn’t seem to be that favourable. Certainly McKay doesn’t want to paint him
in that nuanced of light, unlike say Oliver Stone’s depiction of King George II
in 2008’s W. It makes sense- Cheney is an A-hole. But it doesn’t always make
for captivating viewing. With that said, the film becomes an expose on how some
of the new millennium’s most awful things came to pass. For political junkies,
little will be learned that they didn’t already know. But for those who had no
idea, this is a great starting point.
Tasked with portraying Cheney, Christian Bale (and the make up team) do an admirable job, in a performance that is as inspired by Satan as it is as close to- all whispers, snarls, and steely intimidation. Also solid is Sam Rockwell, who’s W is half lost, half confidently brash. However, wasted, is the likes of Amy Adams as Lynne Cheney (not another thankless Superman role!), and Steve Carrell’s Donald Rumsfield is especially baffling- certainly the renowned war hawk who spouted nonsense about “known unknowns” didn’t feel the need to act like a 40 year old virgin?
Tasked with portraying Cheney, Christian Bale (and the make up team) do an admirable job, in a performance that is as inspired by Satan as it is as close to- all whispers, snarls, and steely intimidation. Also solid is Sam Rockwell, who’s W is half lost, half confidently brash. However, wasted, is the likes of Amy Adams as Lynne Cheney (not another thankless Superman role!), and Steve Carrell’s Donald Rumsfield is especially baffling- certainly the renowned war hawk who spouted nonsense about “known unknowns” didn’t feel the need to act like a 40 year old virgin?
Shrouded in secrets and deception, we’ll never know what
really happened during W’s reign. Bush and Cheney’s mockery of the presidency,
constitution, and political process ensure that. McKay’s collages of scenes can
come across as more distracting than impactful, but at least we know- due to
suffering multiple coronary attacks, Cheney definitely had a heart.
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