"Ides of March" is a well-crafted, brilliantly acted and utterly predictable movie about the cynicism that runs through American politics -- starting with the politicians at the top, and trickling all the way down to Joe Citizen.
Although the movie stars George Clooney as Gov. Mike Morris, an Obama-esque Democrat who is leading the polls in his party's presidential primary, it's not really about him.
Instead the campaign is seen through the eyes of Ryan Gosling's character, Stephen Meyers, Morris's hot-shot press secretary who may be both too slick and too idealistic for his job.
Meyers, as he tells a New York Times reporter (played by a disheveled Marisa Tomei), is a "true believer" in Morris, a liberal Democrat who says all the things the left wishes Barack Obama would. But Meyers is also an ambitious believer, who sees Morris as the guy to carry him into an important White House job and beyond.
Gosling, as he was in the recent "Drive," is a hypnotic screen presence, although he couldn't be a more different character. He puts "Ides of March" on his back and carries it right until its fantastic last shot.
As a director, Clooney has made some great choices, particularly with his supporting cast. Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Paul Giamatti play rival chief of staffs who have seen it all and are all the more ruthless for it, but they somehow manage to avoid sliding into caricature. Jeffrey Wright also shows up in a small role as an influential senator, whose key endorsement isn't exactly for sale, but hey, that's depending on the offer.
But unfortunately, Clooney is also credited as one of the film's three screenwriters, and that's where the movie fails. The dialogue is right up there with Aaron Sorkin, but the plot runs through political clichés that seemed out-of-date during 1998's "Primary Colors."
The first half of the film is seemingly made for political junkies who wake up to a strong coffee and Politico every morning, and is better for it. But then it stumbles when the second half falls victim to a plot twist that is so predictable and well-worn that George Washington's grandfather might groan.
If I mention that Evan Rachel Woods plays a naïve young campaign worker, that's doesn't deserve a spoiler alert does it? (That said, she's also supposed to be 19, and Woods has too much of an adult presence to play a teenager.)
There's also another pivotal plot point that as someone who has covered politics for five years, I can assure you, doesn't ring true.
Films about corrupt politicians or honest politicians forced to play dirty have been made for decades. "Ides of March" has nothing new to add, except for at least one clever shout out to the dirty world of political blogs.
Clooney has been a crusader for the left-wing of American politics for years, but has said that watching his father run a failed congressional campaign has dissuaded him from actually going into politics. It shows.
In this era of political apathy, it's too bad that Clooney has made a movie that only serves to cement the stereotypes that keep good people out of office.
Three stars out of four.
