Our Brand Is Crisis (2015)

From IMDB:

A battle-hardened American political consultant is sent to help re-elect a controversial president in Bolivia, where she must compete with a long-term rival working for another candidate.

Oddly enough there is a 2005 documentary with the exact same title that discusses American political campaign marketing tactics and their consequences.

Up to now I always thought of Sandra Bullock as a comedian. In this film, however, there is nothing funny about her role as Jane who is a take-no-prisoners stop-at-nothing campaign consultant.

Jane is additionally motivated to win because her opposing campaign consultant is her arch enemy from earlier campaigns, Pat Candy played by Billy Bob Thorton. Just the fact that Thorton is in this film makes it very likely that this film is worth seeing.

Joaquim de Almeida plays the Bolivian candiate that Jane is promoting. You have seen this Portuguese actor in many presentations but I suspect you do not know his name. In fact, I found him in an IMDB list of “Most underrated European actors in hollywood”.

However, the film is rightfully depressing because it rings so true. It is almost as if the film was motivated by our current presidential campaign with its almost entirely negative atmosphere.

As a drama the film could easily have more of an effect than a documentary. At the very least, it will reach a larger audience.

Expect no happy ending.

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