BEFORE: I finally got to watch the Oscars over the weekend. I knew the results already, of course, but I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. I didn't mind Seth McFarlane, I had more of a problem with the producers who vowed to "keep it short" and then refused to cut a musical tribute to "Chicago", a film they also produced. I realize it's the film's 10th Anniversary of winning Best Picture, but so what? It's also the 20th anniversary of "Unforgiven" winning, and the 25th anniversary of "The Last Emperor". Sorry, but we've got to move this baby along.
Also, I wondered why some of the best actors and actresses can be so great in front of a movie camera, and so wooden and nervous in front of the Oscar audience. What gives? Perhaps it was the writing, much of the banter just seemed ill-advised. If you do bad impressions, you might think it would be funny to acknowledge them as bad impressions, but it's not - they're still bad.
Tonight it's another film about a woman Vice Presidential nominee. Linking from "Game Change", Julianne Moore was of course also in "The Big Lebowski" with Jeff Bridges (last seen in "Seabiscuit"), who plays the President.
THE PLOT: Sexy secrets from a woman's past come to light after she is nominated for Vice President.
AFTER: The IMDB got it wrong. The plot summary there says she is running for VP, however there is no campaign involved - she's been nominated to replace a vice president who apparently died, leaving a vacancy that the President is allowed to fill.
The stumbling block is the series of confirmation hearings, comprised of senators from both parties. This is where the film ties in with current events, as Obama's 2nd-term appointees are currently being considered and quite frequently rejected, by the Senate.
What doesn't quite make sense here is the extent of the background checks that are done here - you would think that investigators would make one pass to dig up dirt on a candidate, and they would find out everything they could, then report their findings to their superiors. Information here comes in bits and pieces, and of course it's all timed to arrive at the most dramatic points possible.
Let's suppose someone's trying to slander you, and they come to you with a picture of you punching Mother Teresa, or kicking a puppy. Your first reaction, regardless of your guilt or innocence, should be "That's impossible. I've never done that, so the picture must be phony." That's either a valid defense, or an admission of the possibilities of Photoshop. Under no circumstance should your defense be "What I did in the past is none of your business!" because then you're practically admitting that you did do that thing.
As the audience, we get to know all of the undercurrents here, we know who's got the dirt on whom, even if they don't bring it up in a televised hearing. They COULD have, and that's almost (but not quite) enough. Similarly, we know when the candidate has the perfect comeback to her opposition, even if she chooses at the last second to not use it.
It sort of strains the bounds of credulity that anyone would go through such lengths to become Vice President, while admitting at the same time that it's mostly a thankless, useless job. But then again, you never know what's going to happen to the man in charge, and from everything we see in this film, it's a pretty sweet job. Apparently all you have to do is attend a few staff meetings, and the rest of your day can be devoted to bowling and ordering whatever you want from the White House chef.
Near, the end there are a number of contrivances that I just viewed as impossible. Again, it just boggles the mind as to why a screenwriter would think that anyone would DO that. And I'm not referring to the title character jogging through Arlington Cemetery - which is neither allowed, nor anyone's idea of an appropriate activity.
NITPICK POINT: Plus, she's seen jogging by herself, and as a potential Vice President, where the heck is the Secret Service?
Also starring Joan Allen (last seen in "The Crucible"), Gary Oldman (last seen in "The Scarlet Letter"), Sam Elliott (last heard in "Marmaduke"), Christian Slater (last seen in "Windtalkers") William Petersen, Saul Rubinek (last seen in "Nixon"), Mike Binder, with cameos from Philip Baker Hall, Mariel Hemingway (last seen in "Superman IV: The Quest for Peace").
RATING: 4 out of 10 limousines
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