This was one of the most striking things about the movie that I hadn't anticipated. The parallels between Winston Churchill and Dick Cheney were palpable, whether intentional or not. Both conservative, stubborn, patriotic, bullies who share a bit of a sleazy quality and pride themselves in being wartime leaders. Both truly believed they were acting in their nations' best interests and in the concept of fighting at any cost to preserve their countries' legacies. Plus they're both bald, both have last names that start with "C" AND both tend to favor the platypus' squatted waddle versus a gated stride.
There was one scene where Mrs. Churchill talks about her husband being born for being a leader and he's like a little boy whose toy soldiers have come to life in an game of war. No matter what side of the aisle we sit on politically, can't we all agree that at one point or another we've imagined Dick Cheney and George Bush in Star Wars pajamas, jumping up and down on their bunk beds while playing a game of Risk?
By the time the two C's left office they were considered old order political landmines. Little known fact, despite being a national hero in seeing Britain through the war, Churchill lost his Conservative party the first election following it, in a landslide victory for the liberal Labor party. Anyone smell a hint of the 2008 U.S. election? Paging Mr. Cheney...Mr. Cheney, your country will see you to the door now.
The commonalities between them made for a very interesting viewing experience, as I kept finding myself asking the question, "how will history judge Dick Cheney?" Will we one day look back at him as a national hero in the same vein as Churchill? If the parallels between the two continue, then maybe we will. Though it's worth noting what separates them is the fact that Churchill was fighting the last traditional great war, where there were clear battle lines. Perhaps that small fact makes all the difference.
Obviously you can tell what I took away from the movie and the theme that interested me most, whether it was intentional or not (which I don't think it was). Unfortunately, that's really all I enjoyed about it. A++ acting, art direction and music, but writing and directing not only lacked, but flopped for me.
The movie is sloppily strung together in staccato five minute scenes, jumping in time and location, causing a real problem in trying to connect with any of the characters. You'd get a bit about his relationships with his wife, colleagues, counterparts like FDR, but just when you'd get interested in a piece of the pie, five minutes later you were on the next one. And the majority of the movie felt like one grandiose inspirational speech after another, like a greatest hits album, rather than showing in-depth scenes that advanced character. The movie was a shallow peek into his personal life, without any heart, explanation or understanding.
It's like the director tried to paint a portrait of Churchill, one small brush stroke at a time. Unfortunately when it's completed and you step back and tilt your head while taking a gander, it looks like a neon 80's Spin Art painting and you think, "huh?"
Into the Storm left me thinking and talking about this movie for a while after seeing it, which normally I feel indicates a great movie. Unfortunately, what I found most interesting was not what I believe was supposed to be the point. Depicting a lion of a man, this was definitely a mouse of a movie While you may have helped win the war Mr. Churchill, your movie certainly hasn't earned you a vote from me. I say PUT IT IN YOUR NETFLIX QUEUE and good day to you, sir!
2 comments:
Bravo!!!
Hmmmmm .... Is this movie about Churchill or Dick Cheney? If you go down that political path you run the risk of making this a "forum" and not a movie review.
Post a Comment