Movie #20 - The Campaign

Movie #20 has arrived about 2 weeks earlier than last year it seems, so I'm on track towards my stated mission of seeing more and more movies.  Which is surprising really since I've been working so very much in the last few months.  I guess it goes to show that movies are a great escape from reality if I'm making time to go see so many.

The honour of being movie #20 has gone to The Campaign.  After a nice day wandering around the city shopping, we went to see this with relatively low expectations given the lack of hype.  It turned out to be a great date afternoon but I really think that I might not have enjoyed this as much if I didn't see it with Ben.  The way he laughs at things just scoops me up and makes me laugh more. It wasn't the totally crazy over-the-top Will Ferrell movie that we were expecting but it did have some very funny moments.

I apologise in advance to all the parents I know, but Will Ferrell as a sleazy politician on the campaign trail, punching a baby, in slo-mo, is one of the funniest things we've seen this year.  It's so wrong, I know.  But you won't be able to stop yourself laughing.  I also know that it sounds like this is a crazy, over-the-top Will Ferrell movie, but it's not.  The movie spends a fair bit of time on the political machinations of running for Congress, such as the ad campaigns, shadowy back room deals and debates.  This is meant to be done in a humorous way, and while it IS funny, you kind of get the uncomfortable feeling that some of the scenes could be straight out of the real life campaigns and possibly even downplaying what really goes on.  A scene where Zach Galiafinakis 'accidentally' shoots Will Ferrell is totally ripped from the headlines from the Dick Cheney hunting accident a few years back.  The American political system is clearly totally messed up!

The scenes between Will and Zach are very good, they bounce off each other well.  Zach's character, Marty Huggins, is pretty off the wall if you met him in real life, but again you get the sense that he really wouldn't be that strange in America.  There is some good support from Jason Sudeikis as Will's campaign manager, and Dan Aykroyd and John Lithgow as the mega rich evil dudes backing whoever is winning but otherwise this is the Zach and Will show.  Although Will's John Kerry hair does a fantastic support job as well.

We enjoyed this but it sits pretty far below the best nutty comedies like Step Brothers, Anchorman and Talladega Nights.