  ‘The
Contender’
 Released on video Tuesday,
March 6, 2001
Rated
R Approx
127 Minutes DreamWorks
Home Entertainment -2000
Written
and directed by Rod Lurie
Starring:
Jeff
Bridges
Christian
Slater
Sam
Elliot
Joan
Allen
Gary
Oldman (also the executive producer)
Warnings:
This
movie uses graphic language to describe sexual scenes and presents
some nudity.
[MARCH
10, 2001]
The box said “two thumbs up” and
“Thriller!”
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In
recent years, the "two thumbs up" endorsement has meant
that I probably was going to find the movie to be a loser.
"Thriller" usually means I may endure it but I’m
probably not going to be thrilled with it.
However,
in the case of "The Contender," both my thumbs are up
too, and I am indeed thrilled.
"The
Contender" is a gritty movie, a political "action"
film of sorts. It is a thriller because you don’t have a clear
shot at the plot until it is finally revealed for you. At the end,
you look back on the film and say, "Yeah, I should’ve seen
that coming."
"The
Contender" is gritty because it focuses on a dirty fight
between political rivals to appoint a new vice president of the
United States. The president (played very aptly by Jeff Bridges)
selects a woman, Sen. Lane Hanson of Ohio (Joan Allen), for the
job, against the advice of party officials and his own advisers.
The previous vice president died somehow in office — but
"The Contender" never tries to explain his passing.
The
whole plot is wrapped up in the confirmation hearings and the
process of bringing an appointee to office or sending ’em off
packing.
Gary
Oldman plays Sheldon Runyon, the Republican chairman of the
selection committee. The highly respected, powerful senator seems
bent on not only denying the president his day in the sun but also
destroying the very career of Sen. Hanson.
[to
top of second column in this review]
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Two
things about this movie made a good impression on me.
First,
the acting was excellent. Oldman plays a perfect bad guy in this film
(he seems to have the bad-guy act down pat). Jeff Bridges, who I
thought incapable of playing a convincing president, stepped up to the
plate and delivered. Christian Slater played the part of a freshman
congressman who was seeking to do the right thing on principle, and
was perfectly cast for the part. Finally, Joan Allen was wonderful in
her portrayal of the contender under siege.
Second,
the plot was dynamite. This movie seems to make you move away from
certain characters and make certain assumptions, but you find yourself
making a couple of 90 degree turns before it’s done. In the spirit
of "The West Wing," it is full of political intrigue and the
power of the Washington scene. "The Contender" is a film
about respect and dignity and the rocky road to realizing those two
values.
The
first hour of the movie has a single weakness: The lack of actors on
the set portraying political operatives, appointees, devotees and
those holding office makes you believe the story less. They needed a
fuller cast to make it seem like Washington and government.
This
is not a partisan film about the usual struggle between Republicans
and Democrats. Instead it is a story about the dynamics of power,
accusation and truth.
So,
I recommend this film to you if you enjoy a good thriller, if you
enjoy stories about the political struggles of this nation and if you
like a good fiction about how truth prevails.
I
give it 3˝ stars (out of five).
[midge]
midge@lincolndailynews.com
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