The Front Runner - Hated It

​Starring: Hugh Jackman, Vera Farmiga, JK Simmons, Mark O’Brien
Director: Jason Reitman
Runtime: 1 hour, 53 minutes
Biography | Drama | History | 2018
 
What do you get when you mix Hugh Jackman, the two daughters from Last Man Standing, and the Farmers Insurance dude? This boring movie based on a true story that totally depicts the awfulness of American politics and the right for free press. Now I’m not saying we don’t deserve this right by any means, but c’mon, is it really necessary to ruin someone’s life just because they did a stupid thing like cheat of his wife and mess up their marriage (even though the marriage was obviously not working anyway)?? This is why I don’t watch the news. They blow everything out of proportion for absolutely one reason – to have the most ratings. SELFISH. Just like he says in the movie “it’s nobody’s goddamn business” and for this matter I think it’s true… just because he’s the front runner in an election that gives them the right to slander his name and deem him to be an awful person when it’s most likely not? Why does it even matter to the people? It doesn’t diminish his ability to run a country, just his ability to respect his wife and family. I mean look who our president is now… queue the end of my rant. Now for the movie.
 
The movie itself felt a lot like Spotlight when it comes to acting and direction, although with not as high of an esteemed cast (at least in my opinion). I’m sure I got this feeling because the film was geared more towards the press aspect of the scandal than with the actual parties involved. Spotlight was good, this one was not. With the exception of the two leading characters played by Hugh Jackman and Vera Farmiga, none of the other actors/actresses really stuck out to me as holding their roles. It was interesting to see Molly Ephraim and Kaitlyn Dever in something other than Last Man Standing, especially since they do not play sisters in this film. It’s also interesting to see Sara Paxton again after all these years, I remember watching her in a lot of teeny bopper movies when I was a teeny bopper myself.
 
Like much of the movies I’ve been trying to get through lately (the boring ones I mean), I watched this one in a few segments. I just felt like there were more important things to do with my time, so an hour here, a half hour there, etc is how I got through this one. I recently watched The Sisters Brothers and had to do the same thing with that one, but The Front Runner isn’t as bad. I wonder if I would have been interested in this scandal if I was alive back in 1987… I’m going to say no as I’m not interested at all in this movie now. Hated it. (1/5).