Discounting the one percent of pure-hearted Mr. Smiths in the world, the chances that a politician has gotten their
hands dirty somewhere along their run is almost certain. The Ides of March is one of the many political-dramas
that dives into the corrupt world of politics—yet it distinguishes itself among
the crowd through a variety of unique and refreshing elements.
The Ides of March focuses on
Stephen Meyers (Ryan Gosling), an up-and-coming junior campaign manager who has
been making a name for himself within the political world. Working alongside his senior campaign manager
Paul Zara (Philip Seymour Hoffman), their goal is for Governor Mike Morris (George
Clooney, who also directed the film) to win the Democratic presidential primary
against his competitor Senator Ted Pullman (Michael Mantell) and his own
campaign manager Tom Duffy (Paul Giamatti)—so Morris can run in the general
election and become the next President of the United States.
Immediately, what stands out about The Ides
of March is the film’s impressive cast.
Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Paul Giamatti
are all grade-A talent—rich in personality, sharp wit, and/or raw emotional potency—brought
together in a political drama, a genre driven by personality, sharp wit, and
raw emotional potency. I could sit and
watch these actors go at one another all day in such a subtly ruthless
environment:
Tom: You know, I'm trying to remember if the Democrats have ever nominated an atheist before.
Paul: Well, we know they've nominated a jackass before.
Tom: Oh, must have been you that did that prep work, Stephen. Paul's not that clever.
Paul: You've always had the brain' stuff. But me, l've had the balls.
Tom: Well, it looks like you've got some brains now too. Be careful. I just might have to steal him from you (walks away).
Paul: Hm. What a prick.
Stephen is an interesting version
of the young "pure-hearted" political advocate. Stephen is quite aware that the world he's involved
in is corrupt and rough and if he fails his job there may be no coming back for
him. As such, he is in it to win it and
works intensely at making his candidate look as good as he can to the public,
and his opposition as bad as he can—just teetering on the line of
corruption. Stephen’s passion and
sharpness are showcased in full during the Ohio primary—a state win that can
make or break Morris’ spot as the Democratic ticket to presidency. When practicing Morris’ speech the night
before a debate, Stephen makes sure the workers put risers under Morris’ podium
under the pretense he’s hard of seeing:
Intern: Didn't know the governor had
trouble reading his notes. Why isn't he wearing glasses?
Stephen: No, he doesn't. Just Pullman is
5'8". He's gonna look like a hobbit.
Stephen has his interns get rid of
a broadcasted speech Morris made before announcing his candidacy where he
discusses pacifistic ideals in handling their enemies; “[This is] something the
Republicans could easily use to detract fence-sitting voters from Morris if he
makes it to the general election. We don't need to brag about it. ‘I'm Neville
Chamberlain. I'd like to be your commander in chief.’” Stephen even plans to have Morris ask Pullman
about the latter possibly having investments in a diamond mine in Liberia—something
most likely untrue, yet usable in placing doubt within the more easily-swayed voters:
Stephen: You think there's any truth in this
Pullman having investments in a diamond mine in Liberia?
Intern: Still checking on it, but we got it
from a blog...
Stephen:...I don't care if it's true. I just
wanna hear him denying it. If it is true, great. Find out. But if not, let them
spend the day telling the Post that he doesn't own a diamond mine in Liberia. Win-win.
Stephen understands how the game
works, yet his persona is not without some youthful pure-hearted belief in the
democratic system; “I'll do or say anything if l believe in it. But I have to
believe in the cause.” Stephen truly
believes that Morris is the real deal—the ideal politician that will actually make
a positive difference in the people’s lives—something New York Times reporter Ida
Horowicz (Marisa Tomei) doesn't buy into for one second; “Mike Morris is a
politician. He's a nice guy. They're all nice guys. He will let you down, sooner
or later.” Yet the film leads its
audience to sway towards Stephen’s view of Governor Morris.
Morris possesses incredible charisma not just
in the public eye, but in private as well.
Stephen and Paul discuss with Morris the idea of offering Senator Frank
Thompson (Jeffrey Wright)—a corrupt official whom Morris thinks low of—the
position of Secretary of State in exchange for an endorsement that would
ultimately win them the primary. Yet
Morris rejects the idea on pure principle, stating how he wants a clean campaign
and that they must find another way to win.
Another scene shows Morris and his wife Cindy (Jennifer Ehle) in the personal safety of his
car. It's a genuinely sweet scene where
Morris doubles down on his belief of not endorsing Thompson and has some
loving, down-to-Earth banter with his wife:
Cindy: I was hit up by Mitchell's wife for you to show up at her Daughters of the American Revolution luncheon.
Morris: Who's Mitchell?
Cindy: Congressman from the First District? You might wanna remember that...Do you think we'll lose Ohio?
Morris: I don't know.
Cindy: If you took Thompson's delegates, the race would be over. Ohio wouldn't matter.
Morris: Is Paul working on you?
Cindy: Stephen.
Morris: They are good.
Cindy: Is Thompson so bad?
Morris: He's a s***. Every time I draw a line in the
sand and then I ... I move it. Fundraisers, union deals, I wasn't gonna do any of it. Negative ads. I can't on this one. Not Thompson... Tell Mrs. Mitchell I'll make her goddamn luncheon. Let the old ladies pat me on the head.
Cindy: You've got great hair.
Morris: You too, baby.
Such showcasing of dignity, affection,
and charisma (amplified by George Clooney's typical charismatic performance) leads the audience into partaking in Stephen’s drinking of the Kool-Aid. Not only does Stephen consider Morris the politician that can actually fix the country, but also
considers him his genuine friend—smiling behind the curtains as Morris gives public
television discussions. And yet, there
is another side to Stephen buried but not sealed under his loyalty and trust:
his ambitious side. When Stephen is suddenly
called up by Tom Duffy, asking him to come talk in secret, Stephen goes after a
little hesitation. It's obvious what Tom
wants, and he comes right out and asked Stephen to join Pullman's campaign. Tom reveals his cards to Stephen, how they
already offered Thompson the position and will ultimately win the election and
tells Stephen to join the winning side. Stephen rejects the offer, yet the damage has
already been done—the flattery of being wanted by both sides ends up being his
undoing and Tom’s key to victory.
Genuinely worried by Tom’s game
plan, Stephen admits to Paul that they met up and the opposing side’s scheme. Stephen apologizes for his mistake, yet
paranoid Paul—who finds trust to be the only valuable currency in the political
world—ultimately can't trust him anymore and lets Stephen go, a firing Governor
Morris agrees with. This was all part of
Tom plan—a shot in the dark, last-ditch effort to eliminate the one thing that
could help Morris win the election:
Stephen: You knew I was gonna f***ing tell Paul, didn't you?
Tom: No, I didn't know. I thought you might, but I didn't know...that's the thing about Paul. He's big on loyalty...
Stephen: ...You were never gonna hire me.
Tom: Put yourself in my shoes, Steve. Your opponent has the best media mind in the country working for his team. What are you gonna do? You're either gonna hire him for yourself, or you're gonna work it so if you can't have him, the other team can't either. This is a win-win situation for me. You come work for me, great. Paul doesn't have you. Then again, Paul fires you, I don't want you, fine. Paul still doesn't have you. Either way, I win. And the moment l got you to sit down in that chair... I knew I'd won.
Yet all this is simply a piece to the
chaos that throws Stephen’s life into disarray.
During the campaign’s time in Ohio, Stephen forms a secret relationship with
a young female intern named Molly Steams (Evan Rachel Wood). One night, Stephen accidentally answers
Molly's phone—mistaking it for his—and finds Governor Morris on the other side,
the latter immediately hanging up.
Stephen quickly puts the pieces together as Molly timidly reveals she
had a one-night affair with the Governor and is now pregnant with his
child. Stephen’s faith and trust in
Morris begins to crumble, yet he continues his duties to the campaign by
getting the money Molly needs for an abortion (who cannot go to her parents
with her father being a well-known Christian politician) and telling her that
she can no longer be a part of the campaign:
Stephen: Because you f***ed up.
Molly: He and l both f***ed up.
Stephen: That's true. But I have a responsibility
to him and, more importantly, I have a responsibility
to this campaign... This is the big leagues. lt's mean. When you make a mistake, you lose the right
to play.
Of course, Stephen gets a taste of
his own medicine when Paul and Morris fire him.
When Molly hears about the firing, she realizes Stephen may very well
use such information to get back at the campaign. Unfortunately, she’s absolutely correct when
Stephen—fueled by anger and feelings of betrayal, forgoing all concern empathy
for how this could affect Molly—tries using the information as incentive for
Tom to hire him. Tom ultimately denies
the deal, yet Molly has no way of knowing this and, with nowhere to run or
hide, becomes understandably terrified.
There’s a heartbreaking segment where Stephen goes to check up on Molly and finds her corpse, having overdosed on pills and alcohol. Stephen checks his phone to find multiple voice messages from Molly close to her death; "Stephen, um, l just heard from Ben. Please don't do anything f***ed up... Goddamn it, you motherf***er, pick up the phone. Don't do this. ...l'm not going away." The tragedy, beyond the obvious, is that Stephen genuinely did care for Molly—as seen when he nearly breaks into tears while listening to the voice messages—it's just that his ambition and anger overcame such affection.
There’s a heartbreaking segment where Stephen goes to check up on Molly and finds her corpse, having overdosed on pills and alcohol. Stephen checks his phone to find multiple voice messages from Molly close to her death; "Stephen, um, l just heard from Ben. Please don't do anything f***ed up... Goddamn it, you motherf***er, pick up the phone. Don't do this. ...l'm not going away." The tragedy, beyond the obvious, is that Stephen genuinely did care for Molly—as seen when he nearly breaks into tears while listening to the voice messages—it's just that his ambition and anger overcame such affection.
With Molly’s death, Stephen fully
succumbs to his ambitious side and goes full corrupt—blackmailing and outplaying
Governor Morris with threats of a theoretical note that Molly left behind,
explaining their affair and her pregnancy.
Morris concedes to Stephen’s demands, firing Paul, making Stephen his
head campaign manager, and bribing an endorsement from Senator Thompson—effectively
making him the de facto Democratic nominee.
Whereas the film’s first third showcases Governor Morris at his most
positive, the last third shows him at his worst. We see him lie and play the grieving man
towards Molly’s death, selling lies left and right to avoid scrutiny; “We're in
a state of shock. We send our condolences to Jack and Joanna Stearns and their
entire family… What we know right now is that it appears to have been a drug—an
accidental prescription overdose… We have no reason to believe [it was
suicide]… We just wanted to say that our hearts go out, our prayers go out, to
the entire family. She really is—She was part of our family. [I did not know
her] well, but l did know her. And what l saw was a hard-working young woman with
a great spirit.”
Soon enough, another female intern is
hired to replace Molly as if nothing happened, and Stephen goes on television
to discuss being Morris’ new head campaign manager. The audience hears Morris giving a speech
about the importance of dignity and integrity as Stephen is asked to recount
how the primary unfolded. It strikes me
that Stephen could very well spill all the beans here and now—being a long, elaborate plan at vengeance by publicly revealing all of Morris’
dark secrets. The ending’s ambiguity
certainly makes it a possible interpretation—that there’s still some Mr. Smith
left in Stephen—but I am doubtful of such outcome. By this point, Stephen seems to have fully accepted
and embraced the corruption within politics and disposed of his pure-hearted
belief in the democratic system in exchange for something far easier,
ambitious, and self-centered—the true aspects that make up corrupt
capitalism.
Hollywood has a habit of showing
bias towards a particular side of the political spectrum. Warren Beatty was lowkey blacklisted for his
political satire Bulworth that openly criticized all political parties, while
the adaptation of the Roman à clef story on Bill Clinton's presidential
campaign Primary Colors—which highlight several questionable aspects to the
campaign—altered the book's ambiguous ending by having its protagonist
ultimately show support for the presidential candidate (both films interestingly came out in
1998).
The Ides of March, however, not only focuses on corruption within the Democratic Party but also ends on a far more ominous note. Yet the idea is not to sully the Democratic Party so that the Republicans look good (the film makes sure to criticize them in spirit as well), but to offer a cautionary tale regarding politics (similar to Bulworth): no matter what side and/or party you support, there will always be corruption. Just because they’re on your party's side, doesn’t automatically make them good. Be cautious, do your research, and don’t be swayed by mere compelling words and promises before voting. In this trying time of politics, such cautionary messages have never been more vital.
The Ides of March, however, not only focuses on corruption within the Democratic Party but also ends on a far more ominous note. Yet the idea is not to sully the Democratic Party so that the Republicans look good (the film makes sure to criticize them in spirit as well), but to offer a cautionary tale regarding politics (similar to Bulworth): no matter what side and/or party you support, there will always be corruption. Just because they’re on your party's side, doesn’t automatically make them good. Be cautious, do your research, and don’t be swayed by mere compelling words and promises before voting. In this trying time of politics, such cautionary messages have never been more vital.
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