Swing Vote

Yes, the whole concept is absurd, and as a result the film will probably take a lot of criticism, but I really enjoyed every minute of it at an early screening this evening. I enjoy Kevin Costner's work except when he tries to go action hero and he is thankfully getting too old for that unless he decides to buy growth hormone from Stallone or something. He was terrific in Mr. Brooks and he excels once again in a totally different role. It is the sort of character that he does best, more akin to his "Bull Durham" role. The real find of the film was Madeline Carrol who played his daughter. She joins Abagail Breslin, Dakota Fanning , and Anna Sophia Robb in a current crop of extremely talented tweeners. I enjoyed the entire cast and it was great to see Judge Reinhold for the first time in awhile. The whole concept of how Costner's vote becomes so important is one that is hard to swallow, but if you go along for the ride I promise that you will have a great time. Late in the film Mare Winningham appears in perhaps the films most powerful though least appropriate scene. It is her only scene. I believe it was used to hammer in a serious message though the scene had little to do with the message of the film other than shift to a more sober mood. Sober may not have been the best choice of words to describe the scene though. One of the nicer aspects of the film is its terrific music. A mix of tunes from several decades centered around Marshall Tucker's "Can't You See" really makes for a nice soundtrack. Ultimately the film has a great message about the importance of one person, one vote. And if it gets a lot more democrats(whoops I mean Americans) to vote this year, then in my opinion it will have done a great public service in addition to being solidly entertaining. And no, it does not have a liberal agenda, so all you Rush fans need to hold judgment before slamming the film. Unlike this reviewer, the film is really good at not taking a political stance. The film depicts all politicians as if they would stoop to anything to get elected, and garners a lot of laughs with that premise. I want to add one last thing. I would call this a family movie except for the profanity. I took my 9 year old precocious daughter and she loved it, but there was actually a running joke about Costner's character's love of swearing. So if a little swearing and some references to controversial issues (abortion, gay marriage, legal pot) are OK with you, bring the kids. Like I said, it does have a good message.

Swing Vote was an average movie. The movie was not amazing by any means. I did like the story a lot though. It was one of the bright spots of the movie along with the acting and meaning between Kevin Costner and his daughter. Her and him both played very good parts. Kevin Costner was especially funny. I think the movie could have been a lot better. It was mostly just the same stuff. It mostly all took place in the same places. It wasn't very entertaining which wasn't a good thing. I think they could have done a lot more with this movie. It wasn't to long or to short. I think it did have a lot of heart warming scenes. A couple scenes might get some people to have tears in their eyes. It did have a few good moments with the presidents. The story is explained very well. The ending definitely wasn't very good either. It really left it up in the air. Overall don't go spending big money on this movie. I think there are many other good movies out that are better than this. All and all an average movie.

If you're seeing a new move this weekend, skip the Mummy 3 (yes, I know that's not the real title) and see Swing Vote instead. From the advertisements, I expected something along the lines of Man of the Year or Head of State. But it was better. You should know, though, it's not really a comedy. There are some really funny parts, but it's not a comedy. Madeline Carroll was fantastic. She has a very promising career ahead of her. The way the candidates pandered to Bud (Kevin Costner) may seem silly, but it's really what they do in real life. It's just not as obvious when they do it based on polls instead of the opinion of one man. The premise that drives the movie is a little weak, but honestly I got over it. Let the loose and unlikely plot point in the beginning go and you will enjoy this film. Finally, as an audience, you really felt connected to Molly, Bud's Daughter, and as she begins to lose faith in him, you feel like giving up on him, too. The cast was phenomenal, from Kelsey Grammar to Nathan Lane. All of them were amazing. 8/10 See it before November

I went to this moving expecting a comedy / parody of past elections; instead I got an onslaught of drunkenness as well as child neglect in scene after scene. By the end of the movie, all that I wanted to happen was for Child Protective Services to come in and remove the daughter from the neglectful father. Foster care would be much better than what that girl was put through. It seemed like all of the local characters were close to being in the same predicament; low paying jobs, about to be laid off, as well as their children sad and suffering because of it. And if I didn't feel bad enough for the daughter already, the scene had to be added with the mother's rejection too. What for? My feeling was that this was a parody of child neglect, with the presidential election being just a minor backdrop. Absolutely nothing funny about this dog. I wasted $10.00.

I received free tickets to see a screening of Swing Vote, so I decided to give it a shot. Having seen it, I would definitely recommend it to anyone. This is a movie that will have you laughing for the first hour and a half, and then switches gears to a more serious note and leaves you with a warm, fuzzy feeling in the last half hour. Kevin Costner plays a lovable loser and is just so funny! Throughout most of the movie, he didn't deliver a single line without leaving me giggling. I was watching his performance and thinking that he may just deserve an Oscar for this role. (It could happen. Johnny Depp was nominated for Pirates.) Besides Kevin Costner; Kelsey Grammar, Stanley Tucci, Dennis Hopper, and Nathan Lane will also have you rolling with laughter. Whoever came up with the idea to put all of these funny men into one movie was brilliant. And the two presidential candidates played by Grammar and Hopper seem very true to life and likable. But I think the 2nd best performance in the movie goes to Madeline Carroll who plays Kevin Costner's daughter Molly. She does a great job in this role and brings a lot of heart to the movie. The message in this movie is also very powerful. Yes, it seems silly that one man could decide the next president. But it does strike a cord in that every person who votes can make a difference. Voting is our chance for our voice to be heard and to get the people in office that will speak for us. But that message aside, if you go see a movie that will put a smile on your face for 2 hours, go see Swing Vote.

This was obviously meant to remind you of the 2000 election fiasco in Florida. The film basically centers around Kevin Costner's character, who is lazy, irresponsible, and a mess-but he's lovable and fun. His vote will make the difference in giving either candidate (Kelsey Grammar or Dennis Hopper) New Mexico's five electoral votes, which will push him over the limit to win. Both candidates then devise a series of ads pitched specifically at him. There were themes about responsibility, being informed, and hogging your time in the limelight during your 15 minutes of fame during this film. I think it was hilarious and was truly surprised by the ending. See it!!! *** out of ****

SWING VOTE (2008) *1/2 Kevin Costner, Madeline Carroll, Paula Patton, Kelsey Grammar, Dennis Hopper, Nathan Lane, Stanley Tucci, George Lopez, Judge Reinhold, Mare Winningham, Mark Moses, Nana Visitor (Willie Nelson, Richard Petty as themselves). Costner is the best thing about this ham-fisted piece of 21st century "Capra-corn" as a good ol' boy. reprobate drunken single parent to a precocious young daughter (talented newcomer Carroll) whose trail of broken promises and shattered dreams comes to a head when he fails to place his vote in the Presidential election in arguably one of the biggest convoluted plot machinations in recent memory making him the deciding vote in a tie-result (and one scary thought if this is actually true!) The one-note screenplay by Jason Richman attempts to pass muster as political satire but feels like a bad sitcom premise while director Joshua Michael Stern tries to strain at the emotional chords strung too tightly that it ultimately snaps to a dead-halt when in the final act if falls on its face by cheating the audience with some answers. A truly awful attempt in civics lessons via cinema.

I expected little after the lukewarm critical response. The film is not a scathing satire of right-wing hypocrisy. But it is inspired. And rare for this genre, balanced. It's target is voter complacency and the winning-is-everything bloodsport of the presidential race. Believe it or not the film makes a good case for voting as a moral choice, a choice we should take seriously. Not the stuff of Hollywood hilarity for sure. Yet it is well-acted, charming and original. Hard to guess where the story is going. Great laughs are better for being unexpected. Liberal-leaning viewers and critics may have been disappointed based on a trailer showing Dennis Hopper as a rapid pro-life candidate. The story here is about voters. And how far our major political parties are willing to go to court the swing vote. The genius of this film is that it takes targeted campaigning to its logical conclusion. This is the stuff professional persuaders are more and more paid to do. Not perfectly executed, but an inspired premise with better than expected follow-though. A treat. So glad I went. P.S. full disclosure, I am a very liberal Democrat.

Voter Alert: Do not commit felony voter fraud. It is not a nice thing o do and can land you behind large federal bars. Having seen the trailer several times I had high hopes for this film. In one respect, Madeline Carroll's brilliant performance and memorable tear jerker scene, it delivered big time. I read that Costner does not play 'dumb' very well and totally agree. More to the point and aside from the feather lite political angles there was for me a very low and uncomfortable road traveled. It was the polar opposite of comedic entertainment. Costner's Bud is uneducated (not that there's anything wrong with that), dull, a fall down drunk, a lousy parent who expects the next knock on the door to be social services rescuing his daughter, selfish and self centered. He is father, apparently, in name only as his goal in life is to 'fail' his daughter at every turn. On top of Buds lack of formal education is his blissful ignorance of such as 'who is running for President.' Having lost his job and of course his child's health care, Bud's solution is more BUD (beer of course) and hey....time to go fishing. Forget issues of the day. This Bud would not know an issue if he was standing on one. And all of this plods along for 90% of the film until the Hollywood 'resolution' team cranks up the volume so that Bud may, for the first time in his life, issue a sentence or two beyond gibberish. Aside from this is the stubborn fact that Bud remains, to the end, a dishonest man. Funny thing about 'humor.' It doesn't wash with a lost childhood that has Molly turned into and emotional train wreck. Even worse, Bud's self centered parental neglect has left Molly with a moral compass that is so damaged she sees the commission of a felony as a GOOD thing to do. I did not find this relentless emotional abuse entertaining. Watching Costner play a drunk and buffoon also does not work. Imagine a 2008 version of Ralph Cramden with a daughter like Molly. A likable loser whose every scheme fails and whose neglect of Alice, or rather Molly, is always conquered by his good, loving heart. Now imagine the world waiting for Ralph's vote as Ed Norton jumps in to help him brush up on issues of the day. Now that is the swing vote I wanted to see.

"Swing Vote" is a good movie. It could have been great, but it isn't, but it is still good. At its best, it invokes Frank Capra's classic films on politics, including "Meet John Doe" and "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington." It never reaches their level, though, and that failure to hit the top is a bit frustrating. An older, dumpier, and shabbier Kevin Costner is the best part of the film. Costner is a star and that shows here. Even the grunge that is his costume in almost every scene can't disguise his charisma. Costner's voice has not aged and he uses it to great effect, especially in a final speech. The film draws laughs by parodying our two major political parties, with a Democratic presidential candidate starring in the funniest anti-abortion TV commercial ever made (no doubt its competition was slim, but it is very funny) and a Republican presidential candidate touting his party's tender concern for the environment. These excellent scenes make you wish that the movie had gone deeper. It doesn't, though. It veers off into dead-end soap opera subplots about Costner's daughter's boyfriend from school and her attempt to live with her estranged mother (Mare Winningham, in a role that should have ended up on the editing room floor, as it contributes nothing to the film.) The casting wasn't great. The two presidential candidates and their aids end up being cardboard cut-out stereotypes of Machiavellian evil (Stanley Tucci) and compromise (Nathan Lane). Kelsey Grammar and Dennis Hopper, as the candidates, never transcend their "Frasier" and "Easy Rider" personas. Other actors, perhaps unknowns, should have been cast in these two key roles. Paula Patton, the woman who played what would have been the Barbara Stanwyck role in the Frank Capra movie, was pretty as a little doll and a complete bore. This is part of a pattern in today's Hollywood; female leads must have the perfectly perky looks of a plastic doll; there's no need for them to be talented. Male leads, like Costner, can be beat-up, and slovenly, but must be talented. Patton's role, that of the desperate, sharp, female reporter who gains inside knowledge of a national story, is underwritten, and she does nothing with it. It's a dead-end, and that's a shame. It makes me want to rewatch "Meet John Doe" in which Stanwyck worked so well as the female reporter. Overall, though, this movie is better than much else at the multiplex, and it at least ventures into the world of ideas.