Sadly Over-hyped

Pretty Good

Let's be realistic.

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

I have a mind of my own, at least I want to think so, but, I was influenced enough to give Game Change a miss. I was told this was a hatchet job - I must admit that the comments came from Republicans mostly - I finally saw Game Change last night, It literally blew my mind. Hatchet job? What are you talking about? I felt for her, the film humanizes her and somehow explains without partisan hysteria, how we got there, that in a way is to explain how we got here in 2017. Julianne Moore is superb, superb! Not a single false note or cheap shot. I also felt for John McCain, the American hero who told us that Sarah Palin was ready to to be President. The torment in John McCain through Ed Harris's eyes is more eloquent that any line of dialogue. As is Nicolle Wallace, played brilliantly by Sarah Paulson. Her torment is also so real you can touch it. A special mention should go to Woody Harrelson, es Steve Schmidt, extraordinary. Writers, directors and everybody involved deserve oodles of praise. They told us a piece of recent American history about a woman who thought her Vice Presidency was "God's plan"

From the moment I first saw this movie, back when it aired on HBO, I have hailed this as one of the greatest TV movies of all time.Following the campaign trail of John McCain and his crazy running mate Sarah Palin, we are introduced to behind the scenes and it is done remarkably well. Say what you want about the real Palin but this film portrays a pretty accurate film, according to sources.It doesn't bad mouth her per se, it's showing more about how ignorant she was and how she didn't seem to know anything about politics. You may be saying, "Well, then you're a liberal!" and you would be right but this isn't why I liked this film. I liked this film because the writing was spectacular, the acting was so superb that there were times I forgot I was watching Julianne Moore and not the real Palin.Of course this is my opinion about it so check it out for yourself. I think whether Republican or Democrat the film will be well liked around.

Game Change does what I thought was almost impossible and that is to humanize politicians and make them recognizable enough to be even relatable to an audience. The only way this could've been done is if the writer and director behind the film made the story more accessible and detailed on an emotional level rather than a plot level, and this is exactly what the film does. It puts character in the foreground, rather than primaries, debates, and, finally, the election. It examines the people who participate in those events and doesn't try to take the route of humanizing the actual event while almost completely ignoring those involved with it.Director Jay Roach and writer Danny Strong (the same two who made the HBO film Recount - still unseen by me - which dealt with the Gore and Bush election), Game Change deals with the Obama-McCain election of 2008, the most historic election in history. We all know what happened - Barack Obama was elected and became the first African American man ever to hold office - but I'm positive not many know the interworkings and the drama that unfolded. The film focuses on McCain's campaign, starting with their search for a competent vice president who can drum up support for the slumping support of women and also invigorate the press with the same kind of "movie star charisma" as Barack Obama seems to do during his speeches.The McCain campaign settles on the Alaskan governor Sarah Palin, a fearless woman whose heart always seems to be in the right place and whose mindset is always devoted to bettering the lives of her children and husband. When appointed by Steve Schmidt, a wise Republican strategist, their ultimate goal for her is to fuel the slumping McCain polls with life and support. Her first speech, at the Republican National Convention, is where they feel that they've got the next revolutionary woman on their hands. Palin powerfully connects with the audience on a deep, intimate level, sharing stories of humanism and relatable qualities that get the crowd riled up. However, as she begins to be interviewed by news stations, that want her opinion on foreign issues, domestic problems, and serious events burdening America, Palin stutters with uncertainty.And thus Game Change depicts how Palin was a great politician in terms of being able to connect with the people and not alienate them, but show that she was unqualified in regards to her lack of knowledge on world issues. Julianne Moore boldly plays Palin, who is seen as energetic and unmatched in her power in some scenes, and in others, shy, deeply frazzled, and questionably mentally unstable, Mark Wallace states. Moore's role is the toughest of the crowd because she must get the audience to sympathize with a woman who a good majority of the American public doesn't think so highly of. As someone who very skeptical of Palin's leadership abilities and knowledge of the current world, the film made me see a deeper, more presentable light to the woman, and I see it being this way for many other viewers of the film.Ed Harris takes the role of McCain, who we see is largely uninvolved with trying to get Palin on-par with current world issues and making sure she's vice-presidential material. McCain is portrayed as a smart, vulgar, and often unsettled man, who continues fighting with the feelings of personal inferiority and restless attitudes. Finally, there is Steve Schmidt, portrayed by Woody Harrelson in a role almost built for him. Harrelson is known for his tough-guy-with-a-heart roles and uncompromising attitude in his films. Here, he portrays Schmidt, whose significance in the 2008 election I believe has gone unnoticed, with energy and passion, shown explicitly in scenes when he has had enough with Palin's ignorance or her lack of cooperation.Besides the humanization of political candidates, which I stated before was inherently tough and rarely pulled off to great effect, the levels of tension and unsettling urgency during times of the debates and the election are shockingly potent. During these scenes, we usually cut between the live debate and the reaction of McCain's campaign crew, whose reactions I often replicated while watching the film. It's surprising to note that the tension I felt in Game Change was more evident than tension I experience in half the horror films released this or any other year.Game Change is a strong picture for its humanization of political figures, its tense, unnerving depiction of events that are usually regarded as perfunctory and boring in American politics, and the fact that it features a trio of solid performances that work to make both these achievements evident. By the end of the film, I felt sympathy for Sarah Palin and emerged with more practical knowledge on the weight politicians need to bear during heated campaigns. When a film does things right, credit must be awarded; when a film does things that surprise you and strongly affect your thinking, it must be commended.Starring: Julianne Moore, Ed Harris, and Woody Harrelson. Directed by: Jay Roach.

Sarah Palin is one of the most famous politicians in the world, a darling of the American Right and poster girl of the Tea Party. She is also one of the most controversial for the way she acted in the 2008 Presidential Election and a source of fear and mocking from most people who do not share her beliefs. In 2012 HBO made a TV movie, hoping to coincide with a potential Palin Presidential Campaign which luckily never happened. But Game Change is still an interesting film for people interested in American Politics.During the 2008 election Barack Obama is storming the ahead in the polls, having a successful trip in Europe and becomes known for his intelligence and charisma. The John McCain campaign led by Steve Schmidt (Woody Harrelson) feel the campaign needs to do something radical to get the media's attention and after its leaked that McCain's preferred choice for his VP nominate, Joe Lieberman, they see an opportunity to surprise the media and the voters. They feel John McCain needs to appeal to both women and the right and find the perfect candidate, Sarah Palin (Julianne Moore), Governor of Alaska. But despite her confidence as a speechmaker the stresses of the campaign makes Palin more unhinged and campaign more chaotic as she makes more and more gaffs.This is not a film that is going to appeal to Palin supporters, it takes a negative view of her as the film progresses. But I personally like to think of Game Change as both a story of the corrupting influence of modern, national politics on someone who was clearly not ready. There are moments showing Palin to be competent when being asked questions in a personal interview, thinking on her feet during a her convention speech and her great strength to the Republican party was see was seemingly relatable to middle Americans and approachable when she was governor and has a great care and understanding for people with Downs Syndrome. She also occasionally came up with a good point, like that it crude of the media to pick on her 17-year-old daughter. But it was clear she was not well educated, not even having a basic understanding issues and the world and cannot even answer questions that even people would little understanding of politics could answer.There is a strong cast in the film, Moore, Harrelson, Ed Harris and Sarah Paulson. All of them play their roles very well and Moore does get all the mannerisms and speech perfectly. This blended well with the naturalistic direction Jay Roach (most famous for the Austin Powers films and Meet the Parents). Add the characters are well written, all complex and well respected professionals. Whilst Harris did not really look much like John McCain the Senator was treated with respected and wants to do the right thing. He had suffered of being on the receiving end of a dirty campaign and did not wanted to win fairly. His team are smart: but they made a massive mistake picking Palin because she was inexperienced, unintelligence and it was a case was the campaign having their cake and eating it. I am personally of the view McCain did not need to appeal to the right because they were never going to vote for Obama and McCain needed a running mate who had economic experience.Roach has a low key style of direction and it is admitted a little too televisual. There is nothing wrong with it and it blends well when real footage was used. The pacing was fine and it will appeal to people who are fans of The West Wing, even though this film is more focused on a few character relationships between the characters and how they centre around Palin.The film itself revolves around five major events, the selection of Palin, the Convention, the disastrous interviews, the preparations for the VP debate and the end campaign as Palin goes rouge. There is large number of events to put into a film that is only two hours long and some of the pacing is at times too quickly, particularly at the end where she turned from a maniac depressive to being like a bull in a china shop and goes rogue. I would have wanted to see more of that and how the campaign turned so bitter.Game Change is an interesting enough film, even if it has a rather broad approach. But it does satisfy if you are longing for more West Wing style storytelling.7.5/10