Hugh Jackman gives a powerful, complex performance as Gary Hart, an idealistic and charismatic presidential candidate who seemed a shoo-in for the 1988 Democratic nomination until media frenzy over a rumor of an extramarital affair brought his campaign to an abrupt halt. If one-time presidential candidate Gary Hart is recalled at all now, it is as the politician who was so confident of his position as front-runner, that he invited the media to follow him around, which led to the discovery of an affair. That story isn’t exactly true, something Jason Reitman’s political thriller/drama THE FRONT RUNNER corrects, but Gary Hart is not the real subject of this gripping political thriller. THE FRONT RUNNER is really about the media, particularly the sudden historical point at which the way the media covered politicians changed, and what that meant for both campaign coverage and the kind of person willing to run for office,and repercussions into the present day.
Hart might be a little known figure to younger generations or only remembered as historical footnote by others but as Reitman’s thrilling film brings out, this event actually marked the moment when the ground moved, suddenly and permanently, in American politics,the turning point when tabloid media merged with mainstream journalism, a shift then further accelerated and contorted by the internet. That change impacted political campaigns and the kind of person willing to run for office, the results of which we are facing today. It makes for an astonishingly powerful and timely film and, that rarest of birds, one that speaks to both sides of the current political divide.
In 1987, the Colorado senator brought a Western freshness and a mix of bold new ideas, intelligence and youthful energy that particularly inspired young voters, and seemed to make him a lock for the Democratic nomination as well as a strong contender for the presidency. Hart’s meteoric rise and youthful appeal seemed to make him unstoppable but it all came crashing down after reports that the married senator might be having an affair, with a beautiful model named Donna Rice (Sara Paxton), whom he met aboard a campaign donor’s yacht named Monkey Business. The report sparked a news frenzy that brought down Hart’s campaign and ended his political ambitions forever.
Now it seems mindbogglingly dumb that any politician, much less a presidential hopeful, would set foot on a yacht named Monkey Business but the way the media covered politicians was far different in those days, as we learn in this insightful film. Director Jason Reitman tells this story like a thriller, with all the tension that implies, spooling out the facts step-wise and looking behind the curtain of both the campaign and the media. The script was co-written by Reitman, political journalist Matt Bai and former political consultant Jay Carson, based on Matt Bai’s book “All the Truth is Out.” Jay Carson was a creative consultant on “House of Cards,” and might know a thing or two about creating gripping political drama. The Oscar-nominated Reitman has tackled big subjects impacting society before, in THANK YOU FOR SMOKING, JUNO, and UP IN THE AIR. He immediately saw the larger significance of Gary Hart’s story after hearing Matt Bai discussing his book on the podcast Radiolab.
Although there is a serious story underneath, this is an entertaining, engrossing film to watch. Jackman is outstanding in this dramatic role, playing Hart as a gifted candidate who was inspiring to young voters in particular but a personal enigma. Jackman’s Hart is an idealistic, even brilliant man who is eager to discuss new solutions to difficult problems but was more reticent about his personal life. JK Simmons plays Bill Dixon, Gary Hart’s campaign manager, while Alfred Molina plays Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee. Vera Farmiga gives a nearly show-stealing turn as Hart’s wife Lee, a smart, no-nonsense woman with a complicated marriage who preferred to avoid the spotlight.
The film mostly runs on two tracks, the Hart campaign and the media covering him, and periodically a third one of Hart’s family. Each has an ensemble of characters that explore this story and its significant turning point in history. Reitman is less concerned about whether there was an actual affair or not rather and more with the media response to rumors of one. Jackman’s very private Hart does not respond well to prying personal questions and a momentary flash of temper with an off-hand remark to one set of journalists seems to have given an opening to media intrusion into his private life by others. Hart remains focused on policy ideas, unaware of how the rules of the American political world have just shifted, changing even as he speaks.
Reitman often uses a hand-held camera to create of sense of intimacy in both the campaign and new media camps. He also uses overlapping dialog and a kinetic pace to create a sense of realism. The film makes no judgments, remaining neutral, and the point of view shifts throughout. The style of the film at times suggests the dark humor of the 1972 political satire THE CANDIDATE and also Robert Altman’s ensemble social commentary films, in which the viewer must decide which speaker is important in a scene.
This film is less about this one candidate than about the seismic shift in the media echoes into today. That change was brought on by the growth of the 24-hour news cycle, started by the debut of cable news, followed by the breakdown of the hard lines that once separated serious journalism and its policy-focused coverage of public affairs, from tabloid journalism and its gossipy coverage of celebrities. The Gary Hart campaign represented the first major breach in that dam.
The focus on the change in media coverage of politics makes this drama surprisingly contemporary, and more surprisingly, a rare topic on which people on both sides of the current political divide can agree – the toxic shift from issues to personality, from in-depth coverage to chasing the latest shiny object, the pressure to be first to break a story overwhelming the journalistic command to be certain to get the facts right first A quote from Hart used in the film sums up the shift: “Politics in this country – take it from me – is on the verge of becoming another form of athletic competition or sporting match.”
Not that scandals about politician’s extra-marital affairs were never covered, just that the rules about reporting them were different prior to Gary Hart. Politicians used to have to pretty much carry on in public, or fall into the Potomac River with a stripper, to get in the papers. Discreet private behavior was not reported, and presidents especially were give a wide aisle of privacy, with few photos of FDR in his wheelchair and turning a blind eye to affairs of Kennedy and LBJ. In the case of Hart, it wasn’t even clear there was an affair, just the suggestion of one. It didn’t matter though, because times had changed and Hart was caught in the tidal wave as tabloid entertainment merged with mainstream political journalism, in the same year that saw the emergence of mobile new trucks, satellite broadcasting and the debut of TV’s gossip show “A Current Affair.”
This gripping thriller/drama should garner some Oscar buzz for Hugh Jackman, and perhaps finally win Jason Reitman an Oscar. THE FRONT RUNNER opens Wednesday, Nov. 21, at Landmark’s Tivoli Theater and other theaters.
RATING: 5 out of 5 stars
