Every election cycle, somebody tries to cash in on the hype. And every election cycle another shallow political commentary gets added to our collective bonfire. This year’s version is The Campaign, a film which ignores the standard silly premise that an ideal candidate exists; now we just have to trust the system works … based on no evidence whatsoever, of course.
While I’m happy not to be presented with candidates I’d never vote for, like Chris Rock and Robin Williams, the cynical revelation that all candidates are schmucks doesn’t do much for me. Cam Brady (Will Ferrell) is a womanizing douche running unopposed for a fifth consecutive term when the powers that be [read: rich white people] decide to rock the vote for -what else?- personal financial gain. Pretty soon, a zero is presented as the republican contender in the form of Marty 
Huggins (Zach Galifianakis).
Oh boy, a philandering jackass vs. a be-sweatered elephantine ninny. Let the humor begin!
As the race is run, Cam punches a baby, sleeps with every woman he isn’t married to and gets caught with a DWI. And while he cares nothing for his constituency, he remains the better candidate. I say, let the humor begin!
Marty, who best resembles a lower-IQ version of Stuart Smalley, spends most of his time wondering how he feels about being a puppet. As a pawn of the evil Motch brothers (Dan Aykroyd and John Lithgow), Marty must come to terms with the puppet-master desire to build and operate a Chinese sweat shop in Chatham County, North Carolina. I say, let the humor begin!
Now, don’t you guys know any better? To make this parody work, the Motchbros shouldn’t hide what they do, they simply spin it as sound economic practice in lean times and then run attack ads on Cam Brady’s stance on gay marriage/gun rights/terrorist lenience, etc. (In other words, exactly what real power brokers do — modern politics is already parody.) How are you losing an election to a guy who punched a baby, anyway? Please, fellas, next time leave the political commentary to The Onion, or Colbert or The Daily Show.
Office seeking idiots with fluster and bluster
Enough mind power combined for a nano-filibuster
But each time you choose “none of the above”
You will find, invariably, only elephants get love.
Rated R, 85 Minutes
D: Jay Roach
W: Chris Henchy, Shawn Harwell
Genre: Election year fu
Type of person most likely to enjoy this film: Zach Galifianakis believers
Type of person least likely to enjoy this film: People who still can’t get Swing Vote out of their heads
