The Ides of March seems to bite off less than it can chew. Billed as a political morality tale, it ultimately delivers no other message than politics is dirty. As if this is news to the voting public. This is the greatest weakness of this movie, and prevents it from becoming something truly worthwhile. The acting is world-class but the absence of a real message, and a somewhat stilted script restricts The Ides of March from saying something worth hearing. It does its level best to relate the human tragedy behind a political fallout but the one-dimensional message means everything comes off a little immature.
This is not to say that The Ides of March is not worth buying a ticket for. On the contrary, the acting alone is quite enthralling. Director, script writer and support actor George Clooney stands aside for Ryan Gosling to take centre stage as a talented campaign press secretary. Gosling is simply superb in this role as he finds himself embroiled in a political scandal that threatens to derail his candidate’s title run for the presidency. Also central to the plot are Clooney as the promising Democrat candidate, a decorated veteran who appears to have the courage of his convictions, and the brilliant Philip Semour Hoffman as the grizzled, cynical campaign manager, Paul Zara. Marisa Tomei keeps complicating things in her role as a political journalist searching for the next big story, while Molly (Evan Rachel Wood) is the vivacious yet vulnerable intern. Yes, of course, someone on the team ends up sleeping with the political intern but Wood plays her scenes with enough intelligence to steer it away from stereotype.
The theme of seduction related to power is heavily prominent through all the various relationships in the movie, and interesting revelations are brought out into the open as a result. One particularly striking scene takes place on either side of an American flag, as Clooney’s character gives a cool, calm and ‘in-control’ type of speech in front of the flag, while an angry Hoffman and panicking Gosling argue behind it. A simple dichotomy that displays the difference between appearances and reality in the halls of power. The Ides of March lacks the sophistication necessary to be truly hard-hitting but is still lent enough strength by the intense acting to be worth a visit. Three stars out of five. Rated ‘R’ for pervasive language.