If there’s one thing writer-director Adam McKay’s “Vice” does well, it’s highlight how white mediocrity has thrived in American politics and pop culture. But McKay also does this by way of making a mediocre movie about mediocre politician Dick Cheney played by a surprisingly mediocre Christian Bale. At some point, and at some level, you wish the white mediocrity could be reined in, but it never is.
The first problem with “Vice” is that it assumes its audience is in on its joke, which couldn’t be further from the truth. The film is even prefaced by text across the screen reading that the former vice president was “one of the most secretive leaders in history,” so telling this quasi-true story was more than a little difficult. But, “we f—ing tried.”
Hold on: They’re making a comedy about one of the most polarizing, if not downright vilified, men in American political history, one who was integral to the widely condemned invasion of Iraq after 9/11? And not actually confronting anything he did in any real way outside the lens of ludicrousness? Please, spare us.
McKay, known for highlighting the fallacy of American culture in recent films like “The Big Short,” may actually be the best filmmaker to take on a subject like Cheney, one of history’s biggest ruses. That’s not because his films are good, but because McKay seems comfortable presenting a delicate issue as a joke without encouraging or offering any room for discussion. He seems to want to explore how funny is it that someone as monotone and uncharismatic as Cheney became one of the most powerful men in the world.
Getting past the movie’s conceptual goofiness, “Vice” does at least show how someone like Dick rose to power: by failing upward. When we meet Dick at the start of the movie, he’s accosted by police who pull him over for driving under the influence. It’s his second DUI arrest, and his young wife, Lynne (Amy Adams), is over it. But not so over it that she’s going to leave him. At this point, it’s the early ’60s, and Lynne is acutely aware of the fact that as a woman, even one portrayed as fiercely capable as she is here, she has zero options when it comes to climbing up any corporate ladder, so he needs to do that for both of them.
Lynne, like many other women of the era, had to be satisfied as a booster and champion of her husband’s success (including the scholarship she helps secure him at Yale), even if he doesn’t deserve it. Adams’ diligent portrayal of a white middle-class American woman, enhanced by the stuffy country-club wardrobe by costume designer Susan Matheson (“The Big Short”), effectively captures Lynne’s relentless effort to remind people of her husband’s worth. To what end, though?
That’s where the rest of the story comes in. After Cheney arbitrarily decides to be a Republican power player after seeing then-congressman Donald Rumsfeld (Steve Carell, also doing a silly impression of an infamous American figure) throw his weight around, he rises up the GOP ranks during the Ford presidency. Then after a long period of exile, he hobnobs his way back into the White House by taking advantage of the naiveté of Republican presidential nominee George W. Bush (Sam Rockwell at his silliest) and convincing him to alter the role of vice president so that he has more power than tradition has allowed.
And that’s pretty much how a mediocre white man, whose own wife at one point remarks how disastrously unappealing he is as a public speaker, rises to power. The narrator of the film (Jesse Plemons, in a thankless role) notes that Cheney has “an ability to make his wildest ideas sound measured.”
These “wild” ideas, though, include his response to 9/11, his support of waterboarding, the phone tapping of American civilian and numerous other offenses that left a dark stain in American politics. These decisions also came at time when the only people in the room who ever seemed to question him were notably two of the only people of color in the Bush administration: Secretaries of State Colin Powell (Tyler Perry) and later Condoleezza Rice (Lisa Gay Hamilton).
Again, where is the joke here, aside from Bale acting as though he’s in a serious, dramatic movie in which he goes Method by adding on pounds and grunting his way through a half-baked performance? This is neither funny nor insightful.
McKay tries to connect Dick Cheney’s most abhorrent actions and acquisition of power to an era ripe with decayed morality — from Richard Nixon’s resignation after Watergate to Fox News’ mission to make America “right” again. But none of it really lands, especially presented in this tone of “it’s funny because it’s true.” Though the film’s postscript explains how the concept, and continued support, of a unitary executive enables a man like Cheney to seize power, “Vice” holds neither the American people, Cheney nor anyone else in the White House accountable.
And maybe McKay wasn’t really trying to indict anyone here, which is fine. But what’s missing in this and even “The Big Short” is a strong filmmaker’s voice. He’s not saying anything, just poking fun. In an era in which the general public is organizing to confront the White House on multiple issues, this isn’t the film we need right now.
The Evolution of Christian Bale: From 'Newsies' to 'Hostiles' (Photos)
From the beginning of his career, Christian Bale has stood among the best actors of his generation. During his maturation, however, he has shown a willingness to commit to his roles that goes far beyond what most would dare to do.
Empire of the Sun (1987)
Bale's first feature lead came in Steven Spielberg's underrated "Empire of the Sun," a coming-of-age war film about a British orphan who is placed in a Japanese internment camp during WWII. His performance earned rave reviews, as well as a National Board of Review Award for Best Juvenile Performance, the first time the organization had given an award to a child actor.
Warner Bros. Pictures
Newsies (1992)
Bale's performance as strike leader Jack Kelly in "Newsies" is a cult favorite, even though the actor later admitted he didn't really like musicals and had no idea the movie contained singing and dancing when he signed on for the role.
Walt Disney Pictures
Velvet Goldmine (1998)
After stints in family entertainment with "Little Women" and "Pocahontas," Bale took a risk with Todd Haynes' "Velvet Goldmine" by playing a music journalist who is given the strength to come out after writing a story about a former glam rock star, played by Jonathan Rhys Meyers.
Miramax
American Psycho (2000)
Arguably his second breakout role, Bale's turn as sociopath Patrick Bateman showed a new, committed approach to the roles he chose: he had his teeth fixed and worked out constantly to achieve the look ascribed to the character in Bret Easton Ellis' novel. It paid off, however, with some of the best reviews of Bale's career.
Lions Gate Films
Equilibrium (2002)
Though he had previously appeared in "Shaft" with Samuel L. Jackson, Bale was mostly a passive character. "Equilibrium" marked his first true action film performance, proving he could kick ass with the best of them. Bonus note: Bale's character, John Preston, holds the third-highest body count in movie history with 118 kills.
Miramax
The Machinist (2004)
When people talk about "The Machinist," the subject inevitably turns to Bale's staggering weight loss to portray a man who hadn't slept in a year after a personal tragedy. He lost 62 pounds (more than a third of his body weight) and earned highly positive reviews for both his performance and his commitment.
Paramount Classics
Batman Begins (2005)
Immediately after "The Machinist," Bale packed on 100 pounds to take on the coveted role of Bruce Wayne/Batman in Christopher Nolan's "Batman Begins." The actor once again earned positive reviews and a Saturn Award. Bonus note: though the rumor took on a life of its own on the internet, Bale did NOT audition to play Robin in "Batman Forever."
Warner Bros. Pictures
Rescue Dawn (2006)
Though now a box office draw, Bale kept a firm foot in the indie world by once again starving himself for Werner Herzog's "Rescue Dawn," the true story of a German-American fighter pilot who was shot down in Vietnam and placed in a POW camp. Impressed with his performance, Herzog later called Bale "one of the greatest talents of his generation."
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
3:10 to Yuma (2007)
Bale took on his first Western with James Mangold's "3:10 to Yuma" opposite Russell Crowe. A remake of the 1957 classic of the same name, the Welshman more than proves himself as a capable frontier man who, much like his Bruce Wayne, finds himself in the role of a flawed, imperfect and admirable hero.
Lionsgate
The Dark Knight (2008)
"Batman Begins" revived the Batman legacy, but "The Dark Knight" became a global phenomenon and established Bale as one of the biggest movie stars in the world.
Warner Bros. Pictures
Terminator Salvation (2009)
While the film itself was rather forgettable, "Terminator Salvation" became hugely entertaining after an audio tape leaked of Bale berating a crew member for ruining a take. While Bale apologized and severalmembers of the industry came to his defense, the video went viral and gave the whole world a slew of new memes, as well as a new way to view the actor.
Warner Bros. Pictures
The Fighter (2010)
Bale earned his first Oscar nomination and win for playing former boxer and drug addict Dickie Eklund in "The Fighter." Bale, once again, lost an extreme amount of his Batman weight for the role.
Paramount Pictures
The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
Though not the high note that was "The Dark Knight," Bale was able to do what almost no superhero actor is ever given the chance to do: go out on his own terms with an actual character resolution.
Warner Bros. Pictures
Out of the Furnace (2013)
For his first post-"Batman" film, Bale teamed up with Scott Cooper for "Out of the Furnace." One of the most divisive films of the year, it finished with a middling Rotten Tomatoes score but wound up on several critics' best-of-year lists.
Relativity Media
American Hustle (2013)
Bale ate his way to a 43-pound weight gain for "American Hustle," one of the most critically-lauded films of the year, and one of the actor's most commercially successful outside the "Dark Knight" trilogy. Bale would also earn a Best Actor Oscar nomination.
Columbia Pictures
The Big Short (2015)
Bale's third Oscar nomination came courtesy of Adam McKay's "The Big Short," in which the actor plays one of the few men who saw the financial disaster of 2008 coming down the road and figured out a way to make money from it. His performance of a socially anxious man who is much more comfortable dealing with numbers instead of people took many by surprise.
Paramount Pictures
Hostiles (2017)
Bale's second film with Scott Cooper (in a role written specifically for him) sees him return to the Western genre as an Army captain who is tasked with escorting a dying Cheyenne war chief back to his land in order to die.
Entertainment Studios Motion Pictures
Backseat (2018)
Bale is reteaming with Adam McKay for the Dick Cheney biopic "Backseat," which will once again gift us with Bale's fat version in order to remind us all what true commitment to an art looks like.
Getty Images
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From insomniac to superhero, Bale will do just about anything for a role — including risk his health
From the beginning of his career, Christian Bale has stood among the best actors of his generation. During his maturation, however, he has shown a willingness to commit to his roles that goes far beyond what most would dare to do.