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The Candidate (1972)
Jeremy Larner's Oscar-winning screenplay and Robert Redford's charismatic performance in the title role are the stars of 1972's The Candidate, a caustic and unapologetic look at the political machine and its intricacies that one particular politician wants no part of.
Redford plays Bill McKay, an idealistic California lawyer who has a political legacy that he is trying to distance himself from (his father is the governor of California). Crocker Jarman, the tight-assed republican running for re-election of his senatorial seat seams unbeatable and even if the democrats don't have a solution for the election, do know they need to do something new and different in order to give Jarman a run for his money. McKay is approached to run against Jarman for the senate seat, but his handlers don't find it easy working with McKay as his handlers discover that McKay refuses to be handled.
Larner's screenplay is a dead on look at the political machinations that have had our nation in such a vice grip for so long that a lot of people out there have just stopped voting. What makes Larner story so interesting is not just the fact that McKay refuses to be a puppet for the democrats, but he admits to not having all the answers as well. It was so refreshing that during his very first television appearance where he announces his candidacy, he is asked about his position on a topic and he actually says "I don't know.
Director Michael Ritchie is no stranger to films about competition with movies like Smile, Semi-Tough, The Bad News Bears, and Wildcats under his belt and he brings the same unvarnished look at what some people will do in the name of winning that he did in those films. With this film, however, as much as our hero wants to win, he wants to win on his own terms and doesn't want to offer solutions that he really doesn't have. Richie not only shows the travails of trying to train McKay to be a politician, but he also does a more than credible job showing us how this new McKay political machine works by actually giving camera time to the voters and showing us who they are getting through to, who they're not getting through, and most importantly, those who don't care or don't get it.
For a film so early in his career, Redford has rarely commanded the screen the way he does here. Peter Boyle, Allen Garfield, and Michael Lerner offer solid support as the guys who try to handle McKay, and there is a slick glorified cameo by Melvyn Douglas as McKay's father, who does his best to downplay his estranged relationship with his son. There's also a blink and you miss it cameo from two time Redford leading lady Natalie Wood. It's a little on the talky side, but all of the talk is very smart.
Jeremy Larner's Oscar-winning screenplay and Robert Redford's charismatic performance in the title role are the stars of 1972's The Candidate, a caustic and unapologetic look at the political machine and its intricacies that one particular politician wants no part of.
Redford plays Bill McKay, an idealistic California lawyer who has a political legacy that he is trying to distance himself from (his father is the governor of California). Crocker Jarman, the tight-assed republican running for re-election of his senatorial seat seams unbeatable and even if the democrats don't have a solution for the election, do know they need to do something new and different in order to give Jarman a run for his money. McKay is approached to run against Jarman for the senate seat, but his handlers don't find it easy working with McKay as his handlers discover that McKay refuses to be handled.
Larner's screenplay is a dead on look at the political machinations that have had our nation in such a vice grip for so long that a lot of people out there have just stopped voting. What makes Larner story so interesting is not just the fact that McKay refuses to be a puppet for the democrats, but he admits to not having all the answers as well. It was so refreshing that during his very first television appearance where he announces his candidacy, he is asked about his position on a topic and he actually says "I don't know.
Director Michael Ritchie is no stranger to films about competition with movies like Smile, Semi-Tough, The Bad News Bears, and Wildcats under his belt and he brings the same unvarnished look at what some people will do in the name of winning that he did in those films. With this film, however, as much as our hero wants to win, he wants to win on his own terms and doesn't want to offer solutions that he really doesn't have. Richie not only shows the travails of trying to train McKay to be a politician, but he also does a more than credible job showing us how this new McKay political machine works by actually giving camera time to the voters and showing us who they are getting through to, who they're not getting through, and most importantly, those who don't care or don't get it.
For a film so early in his career, Redford has rarely commanded the screen the way he does here. Peter Boyle, Allen Garfield, and Michael Lerner offer solid support as the guys who try to handle McKay, and there is a slick glorified cameo by Melvyn Douglas as McKay's father, who does his best to downplay his estranged relationship with his son. There's also a blink and you miss it cameo from two time Redford leading lady Natalie Wood. It's a little on the talky side, but all of the talk is very smart.