Did O-Stone jump on the Bush Bashing Bus or is W. a fair crack at the 43rd President of the United States?

For those of you that don’t know, Oliver Stone, the mastermind behind JFK and Nixon has fired out a new Presidential film with what he describes as "a fair and true portrait…" of the highly criticized George W Bush. 
It’s true that Stone doesn’t dwell on the overplayed topics of cocaine, Halliburton, 911 or Katrina, but he doesn’t exactly paint Bush as the most apt president in U.S. history.

Before you get all keyed up about Oliver Stones new movie W., lets remember that Ollie probably knows much more about George Bush Jr than any of you (unless George W happens to be reading this review, in which case please take note that our comment section does not have a spell check).

You may have your own opinions regarding our 43rd President, but the Oscar winning director and Stanley Weiser have done the research that brings to light the person behind the stupid look. 
The biggest problem I see with this film is that it’s too harsh (too true) of a representation for the shit-kicking Bush lovers and far too empathetic for the left-wing junkies.  Just because the man is our president doesn’t mean he’s perfect nor does it mean he’s completely depraved. 
If you can let go of the conjectures you’ve amassed over the past eight years you might find that you enjoy the movie.

With Josh Brolin’s career exploding, thanks in part to his co-staring role in No Country for Old Men, and performances like this one, he joins Anthony Hopkins and Kevin Costner on Stones growing list of political films.  I’m not sure how Jr. carried himself in his younger years, but Brolin’s eloquent merger of public flaws and subtle mannerisms had my brain believing that it was actually Georgy-boy up on that screen, especially during the presidential years.

From the start we’re introduced to all the Presidents men.  With the voice of reason played out in the overacted role of General Colin Powell (Jeffrey Wright), and an equally mechanical performance from Thandie Newton as Condoleezza Rice, the opening scene felt more like a Saturday Night Live skit than a peek into deliberations at the white house.  Certainly both roles were cast wonderfully in terms of appearance, but whether it be Ollie’s choice, an editing decision, or inexperienced acting, Powell and Rice seemed like impressionists playing off obvious idiosyncrasies, an effect grossly compounded by the outstanding performances by Josh Brolin and Richard Dreyfuss as George W. and Dick Cheney respectively.

The always wonderful Scott Glenn (Donald Rumsfeld) adds to the satirical mood when we see him inappropriately sketching Rice’s portrait during the opening oval office meeting, where Cheney lurks in the background like a sith lord watching over his young president apprentice.

The cast is full of other excellent actors such as James Cromwell  (George Herbert Walker Bush), Ellen Burstyn (Barbara Bush), Elizabeth Banks (Laura Bush) and Toby Jones who couldn’t have been a better fit for the role of Karl Rove.

Stone might "claim the high horse and take the low road" on this one, because he definitely knew the message he wanted to paint.  That message reads something like, George W. is an impulsive child suckling at Cheney’s tit and crying for his daddy to notice something other than the fact that he’s a complete waste of flesh that couldn’t even dream of getting excepted to the online University of Phoenix without his family lineage.

I’m not sure if there’s a scene of W’s younger years that didn’t show him with a bottle of alcohol, dancing on a bar, or calling daddy from jail.  But one of the dominating themes of the film was the George Bush/George Bush relationship or lack there of.  With harsh language like, "Who do you think you are, a Kennedy?" and "You disappoint me Jr. deeply disappoint me." it would be interesting to know exactly what kind of interaction these two U.S. presidents had in the past and currently hold today.

The run time is a bit long, and the chronological but non-sequential flow makes the film seem drawn out; right when you think it’s wrapping up you’re brought back to Bushy Jr flipping cards and pounding beers.

Midway through the film George Jr. begins to turn his life around and exchanges one mindless addiction for another when he trades the bottle for
a cross. No need for Jimmy or Jack when you’ve got JC.  Through born-again Christianity and a sober yet cloudy mind, Jr’s ambition peals back the layers of black wool to quell the subcurrent of Jeb’s alpha dog stature in daddy’s eyes.  When Senior’s second presidential run doesn’t earn Jr. the same gleam of respect as the first, G.W.B. tries his own hand at politics with a victory in Texas.  The sweet taste of power and respect help churn Jr’s evangelical mantra "God wants me to be president".

           Most of the film is devoted to the physiology of the man through personal interaction, recklessness, reliance on his cohorts, and conjectures of Jr’s own insecurities regarding failure and living in Papa Bush’s shadow.  It’s interesting to see Cheney subtly cast as the puppet master guiding curious George toward important decisions that always seem to be made over lunch or a leisurely walking of the dog.

"It’s not torture… it’s simulated torture".

"As long as it’s not torture, this country doesn’t torture" (they only simulate torture; whatever that means). 
Ummm, if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, it must be torture.  But when we throw a name like "enhanced interrogation techniques" it seems to make sense to Bush.  According to Stone asserting his alpha status whenever he’s pressured by Dick also seems to make sense, "Hey Vice, when we’re in meetings, keep a lid on it… I’m still the President".

Much like Bush’s Presidency, the latter part of the movie is dominated by the decision to invade Iraq.  Consumed to go bigger and better than his more diplomatic father took Desert Storm in 91, Jr. pushes for a reason to overthrow Saddam.  "The date for the war is already set" Bush babbles to Tony Blair (Ioan Gruffudd) in response to a plea to allow inspectors more time to uncover WMD’s.

Back in the operations room Powell vainly attempts to remind everyone that Iraq had nothing to do with 911, while Rumsfeld appeals to Bush’s ego, "we sweep up all the bad guys in one big swoop, related or not". "We’re missing our perspective", Powell reasserts and continues to describe the difficulties that are sure to come with an invasion of Iraq.  Bush and Rove sit smugly behind in the shadows while solid points and valid concerns from Powell are completely disregarded.  What form of government will replace Saddam, what’s our exit strategy?  Two questions that preface the meat and potatoes of the film and incite perhaps my favorite line which encompasses George W. Bush’s narrow minded Roman-esque non-appreciation for foreign culture and government:
"Any kind of government will do, as long as it’s a democracy". 

Of course it will, because that’s all you know, so it must be the best, right?  I know Georgy boy isn’t the sharpest crayon in the box, but somewhere along the line he must have noticed that the American system is broken, for instance, when he was elected.

Still in the operations room, Cheney decides to stop pussy-footing around.  Lets talk oil!  If we don’t control the middle eastern oil reserves now, Russia and China aren’t going to be lining up as allies when their own wells run dry.  We need to "develop their (Iraq’s) resources"…Ollie drops a bomb on us here,  "We don’t leave", "there is no exit.  We stay" Cheney sputters with a scowl of pride in unleashing his own little masterpiece plan.  We want to ally with Iran who controls 40% of the worlds oil.  Perhaps this is where Jr. swallows the advise he tried to feed to his father, "Don’t think about it too much, it just screws you all up".

When Bush addresses congress with the need to invade Iraq, we see actual footage of John McCain, John Kerry, and Hillary Clinton all clapping at the prospect of war; interesting decision Ollie, what does that mean?

Of course the war begins to go horribly wrong and after visiting disfigured soldiers in the hospital, poor Bushy has the audacity to complain about being born with a silver spoon in his mouth; to calm his anxiety, he’ll go and see CATS his favorite Broadway play.  Of course this all happens in the world of Oliver Stone, but as with The Things We Carry sometimes fiction is closer to the truth.

Some of Bush’s public blunders are used in scenes of private setting, which together with speculative dialog regarding the essence of policies under the Bush administration, provide a more realistic look at actual events, since no one but the parties in attendance know with what candor or stupidity things were discussed; these tidbits add a good flavor to the film without coming across entirely manufactured.

Now, do I think Bush Jr. is an idiot?  Well, yes.  But I don’t believe he’s a bad man, and this is what Oliver Stone attempts to imply.  He may have the best intentions for Americans and the United States of America, he just happens to have a very limited capacity to rationalize and an even more limited vocabulary to to express his narrow-minded views.  Even with the stupid things Bush has said in public ("is our children learning"), Brolin delivers them in a context that you actually appreciate the candid effort with which W. tries (and fails horribly) to communicate.  If the man stopped using metaphors and catchy lingo at every turn, he might not have such a difficult time; but such is the way with politicians.  As W. says to Laura in the film, "politics is not a library, it’s a kick ass skull crushing war".  Apparently one more war that Bush is losing.

At the close of the film we see the April 2004 press conference where Bush struggles to define his presidency and the mistakes he’s made.  Brolin does an excellent job capturing the disconcerted president while his cabinet stands by with uneasy concern.  He’s like the friend you don’t want at your parents dinner for fear of what might come out of his mouth.   

The film ends wit
h George W. Bush’s legacy up in the air.