Vice – A Movie Review

From being a Yale University dropout doing odd jobs in early-1960s Wyoming, Dick Cheney decides to take back control of his life, after his sweetheart and future wife Lynne Cheney’s urgent ultimatum. As an intern during Richard Nixon’s administration, Cheney grabs the opportunity to join the staff of his mentor, Donald Rumsfeld, who takes him under his wing, paving the way to rise through the ranks of the White House. After losing his job during Jimmy Carter’s presidency, Cheney reluctantly accepts George W. Bush’s proposal to be his running mate–a decision that would grant him the power to pull the strings of foreign policy, especially after the fateful and devastating 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Director: Adam McKay
Writer: Adam McKay
Stars: Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Steve Carell, Sam Rockwell
MPAA Rating: R; Duration: 2h 12min; Categories: Biography, Comedy, Drama; Release Date: 25 December 2018 (USA)

Ho boy, I am way behind with movie reviews. We haven’t watched that many lately for some reason, but we saw Vice back in late January in the theater.

This is one of the best films I’ve seen this year. It’s a pseudo-documentary/dramedy biopic that tells the story of Cheney’s political career while skewering the Republican Party and Washington DC politics in general, from the Nixon administration to today. It brings to light how politicians will sell-out everything in the pursuit for power, just how much sway one person can hold in politics, how media was forever changed under the Bush administration, and how this still affects us today. It’s a film that has as many laughs as it does moments of bitter truth. The editing is fantastic and the narrator was an interesting touch, especially once it’s revealed who he is relative to Cheney.

I think what makes the movie is the perfect casting. Christian Bale (putting himself through another significant body change) and Amy Adams teaming up again, this time as Dick and Lynne Cheney further prove they should team up in every movie together. Christian Bale is so believable as Dick Cheney that you suddenly forget that you are even watching Bale at all. He pulls off the mannerisms and that little permanent snear Cheney has as he talks. Then you have Steve Carell as Donald Rumsfeld. Carell very much takes on the personae of Rumsfeld, and looks exactly like the older Rumsfeld. Sam Rockwell does a great George W. Bush, Tyler Perry as Colin Powell, Naomi Watts, Lily Rabe, Jesse Plemons, and plenty more.

As much as this movie paints Cheney as a villain, McKay still gave him depth and compassionate moments, and showing all of his health troubles. You really see how this man became the most powerful VP that we have ever had in the history of the U.S. Presidency and how scary that is because it is all true. We have lived it.

It’s important to remember that while the writers used as much available information as possible, we’re seeing these characters in private intimate moments which have to be fictionalized. Still, there’s enough historical record here to frame those moments to make them believable. It is worth a watch, and I give it a solid 7 while Lay says 6.

(1 votes, average: 7.00 out of 10)

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