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Cast
Laine Hanson (Joan Allen)
President Jackson Evans (Jeff Bridges)
Shelly Runyon (Gary Oldman)
Kermit Newman (Sam Elliott)
Reginald Webster (Christian Slater)
Written
and Directed by Rod Lurie
Rated
R for strong sexual content and language
Running Time: 132 minutes Distributed by Dreamworks
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the Poster!
The
Contender is a prominent political thriller about intrigue,
deception, gender and power. The film opens with the President
of the United States (Bridges) searching for a replacement
for the recently passed away Vice President. The President's
decision is questioned and appalled when he nominates Senator
Laine Hanson (Allen) for the vacancy. The overall shocking
reaction is that Hanson, outside of the fact that she was
a good senator, if confirmed, would be the first woman to
serve as Vice President. After the nomination is revealed,
the conformation process begins with Congress. The one man
that stands in the way of Hanson and the position is Chairman
Shelly Runyon (Oldman), who believes that Hanson has neither
the abilities nor promise of filling the job. Runyon quickly
conjures up an exploiting sexual game from Hanson's past to
manipulate her. While the American people stand in question
if the sexual allegations are true, Hanson keeps her composure
by quietly stating, "My personal life is no one's business."
Thus leading to the harsh struggle for Hanson to show that
she is or is not capable of being the Vice President.
The
Contender is one of the best political thrillers that I have
ever seen. It's content is pounding, believable and precisely
detailed.
Former
film critic Rod Lurie wrote and directed The Contender. His
script is sharp and fabulous. Lurie tackles a very complicated
matter that a few people in politics have faced, and he surrounds
it with questions, realism and brilliant characters. A aspect
that is central in making this script so good is that Lurie
opens the doors for you to route for Laine, The President
and even Chairman Runyon. The character-enhanced scenes in
this film are where Lurie expressed the characters' believable
traits. Examples are the President's well being, food ordering
choices and Runyon's cigar smoking. One notable choice of
connection in the film, is the way Lurie parallels the characters
of President Evans and Shelly Runyon. In my opinion, the two
were connect by their desires and love to eat and eat often.
Lurie's
direction is steady and well ventilated. He captures the pressure
of the media and citizens of this country. An example is his
powerful shot during the committee hearings, where Runyon
and Hanson are on equally spaced black and white television
sets. I also found that Lurie's concentration was the character's
objectives, not presentation. The only problem that I had
with Lurie's direction and script is that he never reveals
why President Jackson is so highly recommendable of Laine
Hanson.
Joan
Allen will probably receive an Oscar nomination for her fiery,
yet calm performance as Laine Hanson. Allen is one of the
best actresses around and has always been cast in supporting
roles. However, The Contender is a film vehicle that she can
carry, and she carries it well. Jeff Bridges is delightful
as the hungry and kind President Evans. Evan's right-hand
man, Kermit Newman (Elliott) is played explosively by the
always-great Sam Elliott. Last but not least, Gary Oldman
gives a slick and engaging performance as Chairman Shelly
Runyon. Along with Allen, remember Oldman and Bridges' names
come Oscar time.
The
Contender is an immense film that reminded me a lot of All
the President's Men. This film could very well get a bundle
of nominations come award season.
Report
Card Grade: A-
Beastman's
Movie Reviews
Copyright, 2000 Joseph C. Tucker
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