This is what happens when you watch too much West Wing. “Hey! Hey! I’ve got a tale of Democrats and politics and intrigue, too!” And, “why always the Democrats?” do you ask. That one’s easy. The reason is there remains an ever-so- slight chance that a Democrat cares about something other than just winning.
The HDIC here is Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney) on a key week of the presidential campaign trail. The Ides of March naturally shares characteristics from its titular progenitor, Julius Caesar. Stephen Meyers (Ryan Gosling) is our loyal Brutus engaged to the campaign, Paul Zara (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) our would-be Cassius, sort-of. While Paul’s loyalty denies the parallel to Shakespeare’s work, March still closely contours a more recent political exploration: the thinly veiled Bill Clinton homage/exposé, Primary Colors. I imagine March as an extension of Colors where we focus less on the big man and more on his soldiers.
This is Ryan Gosling’s film, essentially, and he’s ideal for the part of kingmaker #2. Stephen is a rare combination of old-enough-to-be-a-campaign-veteran and young-enough-not-to-be-jaded-by-the-process. Well, there’s your movie folks – figuring out how to turn Brutus into Bluto. Cliché? Sure, but politics will kill every good instinct in time. And you can see the enthusiastic kid in Stephen; he actually interrupts sexual intercourse to pay attention to a video recast of a town hall Q&A. Yikes! Geez, man, not even football or Idol? Act I ends with Steven getting a call from the competitor’s #1 man, Tom Duffy (Paul Giamatti). Ah, we’ve been waiting, have we not? This is the hand of the devil offered to you … do you shun it or embrace it? Are you ready to enter the next level of politics, Brutus? The intrigue following this call is the best part of the movie.
I call March a West Wing knock-off because the writing, while not bad, is not as sharp. A key plot point emerges when staffer Molly (Evan Rachel Wood) needs $900. Molly is the daughter of the DNC Chairman. Oh. And she can’t find $900. You know, Dems love to cry foul over fundraising issues, but, gimme a break. Unfortunately, almost every single action in the second half of March can be traced to the $900 she couldn’t get for herself. Huh. Well, George, you made a nice movie here, but I wouldn’t count on another directing nomination, Ok? Maybe next primary.
Rated R, 101 Minutes
D: George Clooney
W: George Clooney, Grant Heslov and Beau Willimon
Genre: Political hooey
Type of person most likely to enjoy this film: Poli-sci majors
Type of person least likely to enjoy this film: People who still believe in the democratic process
