The Campaign
201285 minutes
rated R
by Scott Mendelson
Jay Roach's The Campaign is both painfully stupid and pointedly smart at the same time. As a film, it's a chaotic and implausible mess, going from one major event to another with no real connective tissue. It has outrageous events occur onscreen and mostly ignores the real-world implications of said event. Yes, it is technically 'funny' in that its major characters do and say things that elicit laughs. But those laughs come at a high cost, as the film often sacrifices its inherent drama and potential realism for the sake of extended improv riffs. But in terms of what the film has to say about modern politics, it is both insightful and painfully cynical. Jay Roach has played in the sandbox of real political drama, having helmed the superb Recount and Game Change for HBO. Like Ferrell's last big-scale vehicle, The Other Guys, it has whip-smart social and political commentary trapped inside a genuinely bad film.
