Review(c)1998 eric lurio
Primary Colors
Directed by Mike Nichols
This couldn't have come out at a more opportune time. It's silly and profound at the same time and timely as hell and tells a truth as only a fictionalization can.
Ages ago, there was a miniseries called `Washington: Behind Closed Doors' with Jason Robards, Jr. as President Richard Monckton, a thinly disguesed Nixon clone. Changing the last name, permitted Robards to dig into what he though was the inner man without doing a Tricky Dickie impression like Anthony Hopkins would do twenty years later.
Jack Stanton (John Travolta) is to Slick Willie as Monckton was to Tricky Dick. Travolta gets to delve into the inner Clinton without having to do an impression. But do we want to follow him there?
We meet Henry Burton (Adrian Lester) the grandson of a beloved civil rights leader, while he's following Governor Stanton around during a tour of an inner city school adult literacy program.
Before he knows it, Henry is recruited into Stanton's presidential campaign, thereby getting himself dumped by his radical journalist girlfriend. But that's okay, he's soon shacking up with Daisy Green (Maura Tierney), an assistant campaign manager.
This is kind of an idealized version of the ‘92 campaign. We WANT to see Hillery...um...Susan Stanton (Emma Thompson) slap her husband around when she hears about Gennifer Flow...Cashmere McLeod (Gia Carides) tapes on the tube.
We surely would have wanted to hear like Henry and Libby Holden (Kathy Bates) did, that the tapes were faked.[well I WOULD]
Elaine May's writing sparkles and Mike Nichol's direction is on the money.
Nichols has gotten himself one helluva cast here. Billy Bob Thornton is great as spinmeister Richard Jemmons, and Kathy Bates gives her best performance since `Misery,' Larry Hagman gives a truly bravura performance as rival candidate Freddy Picker
This is, more than anything, about idealism. The Stantons are portrayed as genuine idealists as are most of the campaign bigwigs.
The question is if you really believe in the principles how far would you go to put them into effect? Would you just stay pure and attack anyone who disagreed with you the merest iota like Henry's girlfriend? Or would you cheat a bit, and cover up a peccadillo or two like the Stantons?
It's a question that the last part of the movie attempts to answer to great effect. More and more it becomes apparent that Libby Holden is more central a character than Mrs. Stanton is.
Stick another one up on the provisional top-ten list. Every Republican in congress should see this film.
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