If you
happen to be my friend on Facebook then you probably
have noticed that I really enjoy doing one-sentence
reviews about all of the new movies that I see.
Normally, they come to me pretty easily without a whole
lot of thought, but W really had me conflicted
about what I should say. Like most who had seen
and reviewed the film already, I didn't want to drag any
personal politics into what I thought about Oliver
Stone's interpretation of the controversial President's
life. I wanted to be objective, which is honestly
pretty hard when you completely resent someone.
But, I did finally settle on something, and I think it
fits W perfectly...
"A brilliant and tragic telling of one man's struggle to
better himself and the world."
That's rights friends, as it turns out, W isn't a
politically oriented film in any way, shape or form.
It's simply about a man burdened by his family's
success, his personal failures and a glaring
incapability to appreciate the details. He doesn't
see that quitting job after job is damaging to his
reputation - to him it's a way out of being stuck in
something that makes him unhappy. Drinking
constantly isn't a problem as much as it is an easy
method of having a good time with his friends.
Being involved in politics is not a way to help his
country, it's a plea for his father's approval.
And the War in Iraq? He looks at it as his chance
to help forever sustain the American way of life.
Now, in my opinion, those aren't exactly the most
extraordinarily terrible things ever. Anyone who
is eager to find their place in the world has at some
time or another sat down and thought to themselves how
great it would be if they were set with a life of no
worries. Only, most quickly come back down to
Earth when the reality (and details of what would have
to happen for those dreams to come true) sets in.
Not Bush. He sees nothing but the end goal, and as
the picture shows - he repeatedly sets himself up for
failure because he goes in to everything without any
sort of real plan. Or, in other words, he
constantly tests the depth of the water by jumping in
feet first. It really is tragic and, more
importantly, frustrating. W is not easy to
watch.
I honestly hate that Oliver Stone has made me sympathize
with George W. Bush's situation, but I also really
respect him for being objective and understanding that
maybe you have to look a little deeper to see why things
have transpired the way they have. Is Bush
responsible? Yes. And his administration?
Probably even more so. I mean, there's just no way
you can defend anyone over that group's eight-year reign
- and that's not what Stone tries to do at all.
W is just one hell of a look at how charm and grand
ideas can put you (and a country, it would seem) in a
situation that's near impossible to cope with.
This is a can't miss film with amazing performances (I
see no way that Josh Brolin doesn't get nominated for
Best Actor) and a story that's an nothing less than a
modern day tragedy. See it as soon as possible.
- John Laird
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