'The Campaign' Fails To Secure The Vote

In a nutshell, The Campaign shows the lengths to which candidates will go in order to win. Being a comedy, these lengths entail such lewd, lascivious and outrageous actions that it would be nearly impossible to believe any actual candidate would go to those extremes. Unfortunately, given the current state of our political discourse, it feels like we’re not so far away from seeing the acts perpetrated by the two protagonists, played by Will Ferrell and Zach Galifinakis, being attributed to real-life candidates.

Ferrell plays Cam Brady, a four-term congressman from North Carolina running unopposed until Galifinakis’s character Marty Huggins enters the race with the backing of the powerful Motch Brothers (Dan Aykroyd, John Lithgow) and a seedy campaign manager (Dylan McDermott). Unlike Brady, Huggins seems to have better intentions, but what he doesn’t know is that he’s being used to ensure a Motch Brothers business plan goes through without hindrance.

The film tries to blend in political commentary with humor, but the humor isn’t as strong as it can be considering the comedic giants who lead the film. There are comical moments, such as the baby-punching scene shown in trailers and the interactions between Brady and his campaign manager, played by SNL veteran Jason Sudeikis. But in an era in which news networks run 24/7 and political elections resemble horse races, a comedy like this doesn’t seem quite as groundbreaking. More fertile ground might have been found in the way talking heads go after each other over supposed gaffes and errors made by campaigns, and more comedy in the way candidates promote themselves at the expense of their opponents in real life.

The Campaign has funny moments, but is not a funny movie. If you’re looking for political comedy, save the $14 you would pay for the movie ticket and turn on the television for news coverage of the current campaigns. There’s no shortage of humor there.

Comments

There are no comments.

To comment on this article login or register.

More Reviews

'At Any Price' Movie Review: Efron Carries Struggling Script

04/24/2013
'Oblivion' Movie Review: A Satisfying Post-Apocalyptic Sci-Fi Adventure

04/19/2013
‘Jurassic Park 3D’ Movie Review: Celebrating Spielberg’s Heyday With A Modern Spin

04/08/2013
'G.I. Joe: Retaliation' Movie Review: 'G.I. Joe' Barely Puts Up A Fight

04/03/2013
'The Place Beyond The Pines' Movie Review: 'Pines' Delivers Moving, Powerful Action And Emotion

04/01/2013
'The Croods' Movie Review: 'The Croods' Explores Life One Lesson At A Time

03/27/2013

CelebSelect

Danielle Panabaker's Top Pop Picks
- Favorite Band: The Avett Brothers
  
  "I'm really into the Avett Brothers as of late."
- Favorite Book: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
  
  "My girlfriends are I - we are very nerdy. We started a book club and the first book we read was Gone Girl."
- Favorite New Movie: Silver Linings Playbook
  
  "I thought it was a great film and I thought Jennifer Lawrence was incredible, you know those angry tears, I've certainly experienced that."
Paul Van Dyk: Current Favorites
- School of the Seven Bells
  
  The New York-based band unites Benjamin Curtis of "Secret Machines" and Alejandra Deheza. Formed in 2007, the duo is named after a mythical South American pickpocket training academy of the same name.
- Linkin Park
  
  The Californian rock veterans have come a long way since 'Hybrid Theory.' Back now with their fifth studio album in over a decade, 'Living Things' is one of Paul Van Dyck's favorite albums this year.
- Jupiter Jones
  
  The German punk rock band formed in 2002, but has already released several LPs, including an eponymously-named album in 2011.
- Depeche Mode
  
  The legendary Essex electronic band from the 80s remains a classic for Van Dyk. It was also recently among 'Q' magazine's "50 Bands That Changed The World!".
Cody Simpson
- Favorite Movie
  I'm still really into the Ocean's series. I got into them recently. I was always too young to watch them.
- Favorite Book
  This book called Contest by Matthew Reilly, he's an Australian author.
- Favorite Album
  Drake's Take Care — big fan of that
- Favorite TV Show
  The Mentalist
Styx's Lawrence Gowan
- Bossypants by Tina Fey
  
  "That’s got me laughing hysterically on airplanes."
- Making Mirrors by Goyte
  
  "I thought that was a tremendous record."
- The Artist
  
  "It really impressed me."
- Keane
  
  "They’re really strong."
90210's Michael Steger: My Favorite Stuff
- Favorite TV Show: Rome
  
  HBO's series starring Cirian Hinds
- Favorite Album: The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
  
  "Either that or The Gypsy Kings."
- Favorite Book: The Fountainhead
  
  "Probably my favorite book of all time."
- Favorite New Movie: Attack The Block
  
  “It reminded me of The Goonies.”