Swing Vote – A Review Of The Political Comedy Film

Who said a Political Election can’t be fun – well at least in a film? Films on Politics tend to be serious. They are either suspense films, or dramas centered on some kind of a political conspiracy. Sure, there has been the odd political satire that’s funny; Wag The Dog being a case in point. By and large though, election-based films are, for the most part, bereft of any real humor.

So it came as a refreshing change, when having exhausted all the films at my local dvd library, I came across this film called Swing Vote (2008), online.

Yet another film, that did not see a theatrical release in India. But if you can get your hands on it, I believe in the following paragraphs, i’d have convinced you that it’ll be an entertaining 2 hours of your time…

Protagonists

The film is about a lackadaisical single dad, Bud Johnson (played by Kevin Costner) who’s on the wrong side of his 40′s. He bides time pretending to work at an egg packaging plant in a back-of-beyond town in New Mexico. Bud lives with his completely devoted 8 year old daughter Molly (played by Madeline Carroll). While she adores her father and looks after his every need (perhaps going beyond the role of a young child), Molly is, at the same time, distraught at her father’s irresponsible nature. Probably because she is a ‘child of separated parents’, we find Molly, despite her tender age, to be the more mature of the two! She wants desperately for her father to straighten himself out, improve himself as a human being and as a citizen of America, and most of all, to embody a character that she can look up to. Sadly, Bud is the diametric opposite, far removed from the role model father Molly wants him to be.

Plot

The story finds America in the midst of a closely fought Presidential election. Current president Andrew Boone (played by Kelsey Grammer) is fighting tooth and nail with front-runner Donald Greenleaf (played by Dennis Hopper). As the keenly fought contest draws to a close, we find a persistent Molly, trying to get her father to be a responsible citizen and cast his vote. As it turns out, Bud misses his date at the polling booth. A despondent Molly sneaks into the polling station and tries to cast a vote on behalf of Bud. Alas, the machine snaps and the process remains incomplete. The following day, the entire nation finds out that the two candidates are tied, and that one man’s vote, that of Bud Johnson’s, will determine the next president of the United States!

Blissfully unaware of the situation, Bud & Molly go about business as usual. Bud’s slack ways continue, while Molly presents a stellar essay at school, which is to be aired on national television! They soon learn of the incredible truth, and Bud, not one to take much seriously, is seriously perplexed at the situation. What ensues, in true-to-reality style, is a cat-n-mouse oneupmanship game. First, the entire world and his uncle, descend upon their little town in New Mexico. From the entire media machinery to the two warring presidential candidates and their respective entourages; everyone is in Texico (the town). While the media hounds the Johnson residence, tracking each move of the residents, the 2 candidates try to lure a naïve and gullible Bud using every trick in the book. They have just 10 days to brainwash this man, before he recasts his vote – the single vote that will decide the fate of America’s presidency!

Where the film proceeds from this point will be unfair of me to spill the beans. Suffice it to say, its not the end, rather the journey of these two characters (Bud & his daughter Molly), through the 10 days pre-recasting the ballot, that is really sumptuous. Like all journeys I suppose, the fun and emotion is in the ride, not so much in the destination. Supported by a stellar secondary cast essaying interesting characters; like Nathan Lane (Greenleaf’s blinded campaign manager), Stanley Tucci (the current president’s campaign manager), and the TV reporter that breaks the story of the single vote in the first place; the ensemble cast carries forward the plot with aplomb, to its logical conclusion.

Why Watch It?

Brilliant Acting

The characters have been introduced. The plot explained. And while the premise may seem contrived, even absurd; it is really the dialogue and characters that make this film highly entertaining. Take Kevin Costner for example:

There are some of us, who remember Kevin Costner fondly from films such as The Bodyguard. And then there are some of us who resent him for leaving behind an illustrious career with such unflattering portrayals in largely forgettable films as Earl Brooks in Mr.Brooks. An actor that’s had more ups and downs than most others in Hollywood. One who’s been criticized, as much as he’s been loved. Wooden, expressionless, cold – to emotive, intense & brave; strong adjectives, both for and against, have been used to describe his acting ability.

For lovers or haters, Costner returns to celluloid in rare form. He brings alive a slacker Bud Johnson so convincingly, one almost forgets it is Costner playing him. That too when one has rarely seen Costner essay a ‘looser’, it makes it even harder to not view him in conjunction with his pre-established screen-image of self-motived, self-assured characters. But that’s precisely why he is so enchanting. Embodying a character that is the anti-thesis of his own persona, and making the audience completely buy into it, is where the triumph of his performance is. Bud Johnson, the unambitious, below-average American slacker, played brilliantly by Costner of all people!

Similarly, the subtle and confident portrayal of Molly Johnson, from a young actress like  Madeline Carroll, is surprisingly rich. Keep in mind that this is not your everyday 8 year old. She is a child of separated parents, and in Madeline’s portrayal of her character, she is able to bring out a beautifully layered and mature performance – one that swings between hopelessness & eternal hope, love and frustration towards her father, child-like innocence and the deep maturity of an adult; all packed into a potent, engaging and thoroughly well rounded  showcase.

Of the rest of the cast, little needs to be said of such accomplished artists as Nathan Lane, Kelsey Grammer, Stanley Tucci and Dennis Hopper. Their performances are consistently good, despite some of their characters not being particularly well etched.

Humor

The real hero of the film however, is the Humor. Watch it for this alone. Yes, the film does suffer in the 2nd half, and becomes a bit slow and melodramatic. But fear not, for the humor remains. And most of the humor comes from Bud Johnson’s dialogue. His clueless repartee, his absent minded behavior, his relationship with his daughter (which is touching, but really funny too). The dialogue for this character has been written very well, and Costner delivers the funniest punch lines with a poker-faced sincerity that takes the already humorous line to a completely different orbit. Best of all, everything Bud says and does is so true to his character, its almost a study of character-driven dialogue writing.
Vote For Swing-Vote

So if you are fed up with the films at your library and at your nearby theater, Swing Vote is a very good option. Its clean, fun, and engrossing. There is political satire, there is a sadness underlying the father-daughter relationship, there is drama, there is suspense. There is everything that we as Indians intrinsically crave for in a film. And its all topped with the tastiest icing of humor. I vote for it!

[Kartik Bajoria, a regular contributor, runs his own creative agency called BOLD & is also involved in Films & Music as a force of habit!]

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