new-to-DVD review: The Campaign

The Campaign is advertised as a silly comedy cashing in on the star power of Will Ferrell and Zach Galifinakis.  And that it is; fans of Ferrell and Galifinakis will no doubt find much to laugh at.  But the pleasant surprise is that The Campaign also works as an unexpectedly intelligent socio-political satire, with many of its laughs stemming from keen observations about the difference between what Americans think we want from our political candidates, and what actually endears them to us.  It's Frank Capra material written for the Adam Sandler crowd, and it works on both levels.

Ferrell stars as Democratic Congressman Cam Brady of North Carolina's 14th District, who is running for his fifth term unopposed. However, when Brady causes a scandal by leaving a sexually explicit phone message on a Born-Again Christian family's answering machine (Brady thought he was calling his mistress), the resulting scandal motivates his political backers, the Motch Brothers (Dan Aykroyd and John Lithgow) to switch their allegiance to a new candidate.  Martin Sylvester "Marty" Huggins (Galifinakis) is chosen, seemingly at random.  (The fact that the Motch Brothers are friends with Marty's father [Brian Cox] is provided as a half explanation, although Cox's extreme contempt for his son makes this seem like a bit of a plot hole.)

Brady is outraged that anyone dares to even run against him, and he immediately sets the tone for the race by inviting Marty to a "civility dinner," which turns out to be nothing more than a scheme to humiliate Marty in public.  What follows is a series of one-upmanship gags, as Brady and Huggins go to further and further lengths to prove each other to be the more incompetent candidate.  Meanwhile, their increasingly outrageous schemes alternately alienate them from, and endear them to, the public (as the congressional district is presented as a microcosm for America).

No two ways about it, Ferrell gets all of the movie's biggest laughs.  This is not because Ferrell is funnier than Galifinakis (a preferential question I wouldn't dream of getting into, although it is no doubt debated ad nauseum on this movie's IMDb page) but because the writers* are at their best when presenting Brady in all his incompetence.  Marty, who has been plucked from obscurity to be entered into the political arena, may be naive and unfamiliar with the political game, but as a career politician, Brady should know better.  Yet when he blunders, he blunders in truly spectacular fashion, and the movie's best moments are invariably when Brady screws up and then makes things exponentially worse by panicking or refusing to admit he's made a ridiculous blunder. When asked about his formula for making good movies, the great filmmaker Howard Hawks revealed the simplicity of his formula:  "Three great scenes, no bad ones."  With the absolute hilarity of Brady's political bumbling, Ferrell and his writers certainly provide Hawksian success.

Either due to their own personal tendencies, or due to the director's artistic decision, both Ferrell and Galifinakis turn in very broad performances.  Ferrell's Cam Brady is immediately recognizable as only a very minor variation of his George Bush character, while Galifinakis plays Marty Huggins as extremely effeminate -- not because the character is supposed to be gay, mind you, but apparently just because it provides Galifinakis with an added layer of quirkiness.

I suppose neither actor can be faulted for those choices; they're just doing what's worked for them in the past, and it sort of works here.  But on the performance level, I was much more impressed by the actors who play the campaign managers.  As Brady's manager Mitch Wilson, SNL cast member Jason Sudeikis rises above expectations.  He starts out merely mirroring the arrogance that Ferrell infuses into the role of Cam Brady, but as the campaign spins further and further out of control, Sudeikis's role gradually transforms from a one-note character type to a skillfully nuanced study of an everyman witnessing his friend's downfall.

Meanwhile, the under-rated Dylan McDermott, who so often plays sympathetic leading men on TV, here turns in a fun character role as the Motch Brothers' political fixer, Tim Wattley.  Wattley dresses like a male model, moves like an assassin, and is very good at manipulating people into doing exactly what he wants.  He so often uses intimidation as his primary tool that when he switches gears by smiling or winking at you, you're filled with pride, because you feel that, by God, you've earned that approval; it's easy to see how Wattley can get Marty to do so many things he otherwise wouldn't.

And yet the bottom line is that this is a funny movie.  Surprisingly intelligent, and with some supporting performances that will quietly impress you, but mostly just plain funny.

*Chris Hency, Shawn Harwell, and Adam McKay