Recount

(2008)

Directed by

Jay Roach

Review by Todd Plucknett

Recount, the HBO film, is very disappointing and seemingly artificial. It is directed by Jay Roach, who also directed the Austin Powers films and Meet the Parents (and its sequel). This is a different style of film, and though its intentions are good, it just comes off as smug and unappealing.

The film centers on the 2000 Presidential election, in which the outcome came down to one state, Florida. The state was so closely contested that it was demanded that a recount be devised in order to ensure complete accuracy in the results. Oscar-winner Kevin Spacey plays is pretty straight here as Ron Klain, one of Al Gore’s campaign heads. Tom Wilkinson is wonderful as James Baker, a similar character on George W. Bush’s side. The two, even though they never speak to one another until the end, have a constant battle of wits to see which one can come up with the next and better angle on the case. The tension is scarce, but it is riveting to watch these two brilliant actors work here.

Laura Dern plays Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris. Dern does a decent job, but the way the character was used and portrayed was completely ridiculous. There is also some fine work by Bruce McGill, the always reliable Bob Balaban, and John Hurt. However, the movie is at its best when Denis Leary is on screen, which is not nearly enough. His presence on screen was just superb. He gave the film’s best performance.

The writing was tolerable. It had some fairly exciting conversations and events, but it basically boils down to the fact that this is a film of Democratic arrogance and obvious conclusions. The movie struts about like a documentary, except without the actual fascination of hearing from people who were actually there. So much of it is forced and almost always too convenient. All the Republicans are portrayed as either schemers or indecisive idiots, while the Democrats are basically shown as being heroes or saints. The film fails to open its eyes to both parties.

The film is edited in a way that attempts to manipulate the audience into accepting its inevitable conclusions. It exaggerates several points, and it relies so heavily on assumptions and propaganda. What was the point of this movie? We already knew that the recount in Florida was a mess and that it caused further division of the political parties. Why do we need a blind Democratic finger-pointing take on the event? It could have been great if it had gone for more of a United 93 approach, showing that both sides had legitimate reasons and justification for doing what they were doing. Instead, it just turns out to be pretentious and essentially thoughtless. While it is mostly entertaining and contains several worthy performances, the film could have been handled so much better. A documentary take on the subject should be more effective.

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