"THE IDES OF MARCH" — ★★★ — George Clooney, Ryan Gosling, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Evan Rachel Wood, Marisa Tomei; R (pervasive language); in general release
Beware the ides of March, the soothsayer famously warns Julius Caesar.
It's a warning he should have heeded, of course. There's no need for any such caution in "The Ides of March," a smart, somewhat cynical take on modern politics with George Clooney as co-star, co-writer and director.
Don't expect a Clooney vehicle, however (that comes later in the year, with "The Descendants"). In many ways this is Ryan Gosling's movie. The buzz at the Toronto International Film Festival was that that this film was a kind of passing of the torch from Clooney to the younger star, and there's something to that.
But it's also a knowing look at the machinations of a political campaign, with its established and somewhat bizarre rituals, and the compromises and betrayals that often accompany getting someone elected.
Et tu, Brute?
Gosling plays Stephen Myers, second-highest in the food chain in the campaigning of Gov. Mike Morris (Clooney), the Democratic governor of Pennsylvania who is running for president. Myers is young, but he's seasoned for a man his age; he's worked on plenty of campaigns, but in Morris, he's finally found the candidate he genuinely believes in. For Myers, Morris is the One.
Of course, as in life, nothing goes smoothly in politics. But Myers' relationship with a young campaign intern (Evan Rachel Wood) wrinkles things a bit. There is also an awkward political dance with Tom Duffy (Paul Giamatti), the man running the campaign of Morris' last credible challenger for the Democratic nomination.
And there is Myers' fiercely loyal boss, Paul (Philip Seymour Hoffman), who runs the campaign — loyal not necessarily to Morris himself, but to his own principles. Plus, a New York Times reporter (Marisa Tomei) clouds the waters.
Then there is the candidate himself. Morris is the Democratic dream candidate. He won't be pinned down on religion — he's a lapsed Catholic who tells voters to vote for his opponent if they don't think he's religious enough. He also thinks the government has no place deciding whether a woman should have an abortion. Rather than leading him on the road to political suicide, these beliefs instead strengthen his core support and don't seem to drive away potential voters.
Yes, that's a political fantasy. But Clooney's film, based on Beau Willimon's play "Farragut North," is more of a morality fable than a documentary-style look at getting a candidate elected. There is also more to Morris than meets the eye, including information that, if made public, would be devastating.
Myers is forced to confront all this and to make decisions about his job and himself that change him. When the film begins, he is a wide-eyed idealist, consumed with the idea of Morris being the right man at the right time for the country. By its end he is a hardened realist, not only aware of how to play a mean-spirited, cynical game, but an expert at all of its ugly little details.
Clooney's not in the movie that much — he was busy with other things, after all — but his Morris is fascinating. The candidate comes off a bit like Clooney does: devil-may-care, comfortable in his own skin, willing to say what he thinks. But that's the public candidate. Behind the scenes he's much more aloof, even with his most-trusted advisers. He gives them what they need and he's gone — just like real life. These guys aren't best friends. They're people doing their jobs, and whatever it takes to get them done.
Some elements of the film are too melodramatic, but there's not a bad performance in it — look at the cast and that's not surprising — and Gosling is outstanding. He makes Myers' emotional journey believable and compelling. His transformation may come off as an exercise in cynicism for some, and maybe it is. So what? Some stories aren't pretty, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't be told.
"The Ides of March" is rated R for pervasive language; running time: 101 minutes.