Okay, here's the deal. I've told y'all a few times before, but for those of you who don't know, I'm not a political person. What little interest I may have had in politics went right out the bathroom window in 1998. Like most of the world, I got the unique opportunity to watch a large group of supposedly educated and respectable people make complete horses' asses of themselves every day for a year. This was on a national level, I grant you, but even on the local level, I've seen the stupidity quotient go up like a gunpowder factory on fire.
Carver Point, it's my great shame to say, is no different. The mayoral race of '98 was a particularly nasty one, one that was only resolved after the sheriff broke up a wrasslin' match on Election Day between the Right Honorable Jimmy Plunkett (incumbent) and challenger Maurice DuPree. Seems Maurice threw the gauntlet down by accusing Mayor Jimmy's daddy of being the worst bootlegger in fifteen counties. Jimmy took offense to that, mainly 'cause Jimmy's daddy Buford was by far the best bootlegger Carver County has ever known. Jimmy won the fight and the election, and promptly proved that he was the best man for the job by having his daddy Buford arrested. Unfortunately, Mister Buford was 88 years old by that time and hadn't even driven a car in ten years, let alone fix a batch of Carver Point's Finest. Due to lack of evidence, Buford was released and cleared of all charges brought forth by Maurice.
I guess it's true that politics, no matter how big or small the office, is never a pretty thing. And now, thanks to Alexander Payne's new movie Election, we get to see the point made. And Election, starring Matthew Broderick and Reese Witherspoon, not only makes the point, but turns out to be one of the better movies offered up this year. This sneaky little devil comes out of nowhere, and could easily be nudging its way onto the top ten lists by year's end.
Matthew Broderick stars as Jim McAllister, a high school teacher in Nebraska, whose only fault is that he loves his job. Then he screws up big-time by actually getting "involved," as he puts it. He actually gets a little too involved, thanks in part to Tracy Flick (Witherspoon), a perfectly lovely young girl who happens to be a Machiavellian power-hungry wench hiding behind a "milk-and-cookie" image. She wants to be president. Of the student government, that is. She's chin-deep in every activity on campus, as long as she's the leader, and she wants the ultimate office. Leader of the School. McAllister sees this, and takes it upon himself to urge a popular jock named Paul, (newcomer Chris Klein) to run against Tracy so she won't be unopposed. Paul's lesbian sister Tammy (played by another newbie, Jessica Campbell) also decides to join the race when she finds out her ex-girlfriend is now dating her brother.
As McAllister gets deeper and deeper in trouble, due to his interference in the Election, we get into a Rashomon-style story, with all four main characters telling their versions of what transpires.
Immediately bestowing credit where credit is due, all hail director Alexander Payne. Payne, who also directed the wonderful but hardly-seen Citizen Ruth, builds a great cast out of two hot ticket actors and two unknowns, and takes them through a story wonderfully. Broderick is cast perfectly as the teacher who's only trying to help, but gets caught in his own web. His relative normal character suits him, because McAllister has the charm and grace of Broderick's legendary Ferris Bueller without all the smirking and camera mugging. He's a guy who tried to make something interesting happen, without realizing he was opening a whole 55-gallon drum of stink.
His counterpart, Tracy, is a perfect example of why Reese Witherspoon needs more starring roles. She is so wonderful here, and the part of Tracy gives her the range to be both a Barbie Doll and Satan's Spawn, all at the same time. You're never quite sure when one or the other will rear its ugly head, and, all the while, the edge of her sweet little voice could chip paint. If this movie and Pleasantville are your only big experiences with Miss Reese, hit a rent-a-flick place immediately and find a movie called Freeway. It's a funky retelling of the Little Red Riding Hood story, told in a white-trash trailer-park setting, and Reese plays Little Red as the trashiest teen sexpot to ever grace a doublewide. It's a hilarious movie, and she is incredible in it.
Big kudos, too, should go to supporting cast members Klein and Campbell. Klein plays a pretty stereotypical role with a lot of class and style. He's goofy as a three-dollar bill, but he plays it in a way that Brendan Fraser would appreciate -- dumb but loveable. Campbell, on the other hand, just unleashes herself and runs for the road. Her character is the only one in the movie honest enough to say that she is interested only in herself, and her "campaign" is one based in simple truth. Her speech is one of the best moments in the film, as she tells the assembly, "Vote for me because I don't even want to go to college, and I don't care!" Blunt honesty instead of flinging empty promises. Gee, what a concept....
While this may seem like an easy-going comedy of concept, though, Payne manages to sneak by and turn this into a pretty good "lesson" movie. Setting the film in his home state of Nebraska only makes the point bigger. He focuses on the everyday lies people use to rationalize their everyday actions. Jim, Tracy, Paul, and Tammy all see what they do as the right thing, no matter how bad it turns out or who gets hurt in the process. As Jim teaches ethics, he's violating every word he says in his actions. His vendetta with Tracy crosses over into his home life, his marriage, and even his own basic philosophy, yet it's all for a "good cause."
Payne also drives home a point made oh-so-clear by the Boys in D.C. over and over and over again. Namely, nobody, no matter how they justify their actions, gets into politics for the good of their constituents. They are in it for the power. Even those who are indeed basically good people end up having to sacrifice what they know as good in order to get anything done. I don't care if it's the local school board, the state legislature, Congress, or the Presidency. If you want to make it in politics, you have to sign over your conscience until you retire. Those who don't will never succeed.
But I digress...
Look, we're about to get bombarded from a hundred different angles with summer blockbusters, folks. Don't make a mistake and miss Election. If I had to compare this film to anything, it would be Rushmore, a genius of a film that tanked like New Coke at the box office. It deserved better, and I hope once it gets to home video, it gets the chance that it deserves. Don't let the same thing happen to Election.
Make a point to see Election and you'll see excellence of execution, and laugh while you uncomfortably recognize folks you went to school with, maybe even yourself. It's not often you get to expand your mind and have a good laugh or three at the same time. Election offers both. Vote "yes" and you won't regret it.
Image copyright Paramount Pictures.
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