our brand is crisis ending explained

107 minutes Cast Sandra Bullock as 'Calamity' Jane Bodine Anthony Mackie as Ben Billy Bob Thornton as Pat Candy Zoe Kazan as LeBlanc Scoot McNairy as Buckley Ann Dowd as Nell Director David Gordon Green Screenplay Peter Straughan Writer (original documentary) Jane is on the set but is only seen in the background on a lounge chair, still looking unwell. That is, of course, when you can get her out of 'retirement' and give her a good reason to . SALON is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as a trademark of Salon.com, LLC. [3], The film opened on October 30, 2015, alongside Burnt and Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse. Thats why Hollywood had to invent a character with such powers: the knowing, salty political consultant. In a restaurant, Jane sits alone until Candy sits next to her. There is very little violence. Candy reveals it was him (via a friend of a friend) who anonymously suggested to the Castillo campaign to hire Jane. Our Brand Is Crisis is a 2015 American comedy-drama film directed by David Gordon Green and written by Peter Straughan, based on the 2005 documentary film of the same name by Rachel Boynton. On a campaign bus heading toward a remote Bolivia location on a small dirt road, they discover Riveras bus is directly ahead of them. At first Jane is defensive, claiming that she was just doing her job, but soon her heart is softened as she realizes the mess she helped to make. And Im not talking about content issues, like language or nudity, Im talking about the message the movie preaches at the audience. I say, beat Candy because Jane doesnt really care that much about Castillo or Bolivia. Our Brand is Crisis hits a lot of clunky notes and the end is unforgivably cornball, but it's still one of the liveliest political black comedies I've seen in a while. Both Bullock and Thornton portray Carvillesque characters (and the bald Thornton looks the part). Sandra Bullock and Billy Bob Thornton go head to head as strategists in a patchy satire about the 2002 Bolivian elections. Read full review SEE ALL 35 REVIEWS User Score Write a Review 6.4 Positive: 23 In the city, Eddie is hanging Castillo posters. All this makes for mid-grade entertainment value, at best. Were not supposed to earnestly admire any of these people, but we are supposed to guiltily admire their unfailing ability to guide impossible undertakings, such as the practice of politics, to victory through whatever means. She showed how American marketing techniques never before used in that region steered a desperate country towards a rich, arrogant former president Gonzalo Snchez de Lozada (Goni), who proved catastrophically out of touch. Eddie is delivering a framed photograph to now President-Elect Castillos Senate offices. We root for Jane to win and feel guilty for caring more about the game than the country. Candy can be seen watching the action in the background. A knock on the door reveals Eddie, saddened and angry, who tells her about the IMF plan. Ben says, ok. Its yoked to an impoverished Bolivian teenager who believesdespite the angry effusions of his brother and friends in their hillside slumthat Castillo is sincere in trying to bring about economic equality. I get it -- Green and Straughan and Participant were trying to make a Sandra Bullock movie that Warner Bros. can put onto thousands of theater screens. [13] Peter Straughan was set to write the script, with Clooney attached as a potential director and star for the film, about the 2002 Bolivian presidential election's campaign by James Carville's Washington, D.C.-based political consulting firm Greenberg Carville Shrum,[14][15] which was hired by candidate Gonzalo Snchez de Lozada. Karen Kunawicz. ", "Toronto Review: Sandra Bullock Carries Our Brand Is Crisis", "Sandra Bullock Adds Gravity to Bolivian Political Satire", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Our_Brand_Is_Crisis_(2015_film)&oldid=1134072378, Tilda Del Toro as Pedro Castillo's secretary, This page was last edited on 16 January 2023, at 22:01. OUR BRAND IS CRISIS barely holds together as the story moves from campaign incident to campaign incident. Jane wakes up in her hotel room. Boynton traveled to Bolivia to cover the activity of a high-priced U.S. consulting firm, Greenberg Carville, and Shrum, in the 2002 presidential race, and she had amazingfrankly, flabbergastingaccess. Answer. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. A montage shows the crisis message is working and support for Castillo is growing. Slate is published by The Slate Group, a Graham Holdings Company. The problem is that they do such a good job selling this Jane that they do exactly what theyre supposed to do: They make you curious about her. Bodine used to be the best in the game, but an unfortunate series of events during a campaign destroyed her reputation and confidence. The Weeknd responded to a Rolling Stone story claiming the show is a rape fantasy with a clip of his character calling the mag irrelevant. Candy goes on to tell Jane, If you fight with monsters too long, you become a monster. Jane later says that shell kill herself if she loses to Candy again (though this appears to be hyperbole) She has lost every election against him. In its best moments, Our Brand Is Crisis is reminiscent of Wag the Dog; it knows how fucked politics is and acts accordingly. He takes a room across the balcony in Janes hotel, where he can meet her stare, undress her with his eyes, and psych her out. He denies being a member of the cult. Our Brand is Crisis was released across all major streaming and cable platforms on Tuesday, January 19, 2016. Jane invites them out to dinner with the campaign team. Eduardo, a young volunteer of the Castillo campaign, is deeply impressed by this show of commitment. Jane wants to overtake it. The go-to source for comic book and superhero movie fans. Castillo immediately punches the man. Once a political idealist, she increasingly was a strategist for hire outwardly not caring about the actual politics of her boss. Meanwhile, the senior advisors (Ben, Nell and others) talk about Jane and Candy, how they had sex previously, and how she spread a rumor during a campaign that Candys candidates daughter was on drugs. Fliers are discovered, authored by the La Paz Grassroots that say Castillo had a three year affair. Its nun versus AI in Damon Lindelofs new series. Jane suggests that Castillo reveal everything that could be used against him, but he refuses. Another screenshot shows Castillo has 10% to Riveras 39% with 80 days until election day. At a large debate with all the candidates, Jane is found behind the stage backdrop during the debate. Jane says that Pat Candy is behind the fliers. As one of his first moves as president, Morales unilaterally reversed the terms of Bolivias natural gas contracts with foreign corporations: Instead of the investors getting 82 percent of the profits and the Bolivian state getting 18 percent, it was suddenly the other way around. When youre in the movie reviewing ministry, a variety of messages and agendas come and go. The pacing is lickety-split, the talk is boisterous, and the cast is all aces. The boys (all adult age) are living alone because their parents have both died. It casts a skeptical eye at the gospel of globalization thats preached by Janes team, but its outrage is more directed at cynicism than at any specific system. Later shell claim he got the room intentionally to get under her skin. Jane is seen having a moment of introspection. Eventually Eddie sees her and they make eye contact. There are also two middle finger displays. You\'ll receive the next newsletter in your inbox. And in the real Bolivian election of 02, there was no rivalry between warring American spin doctors working for different candidates, because Goni was the only candidate who got that kind of help, in clear preference to his populist opponents on both the right and left. As a result of this, Castillo agrees to start running a negative campaign. However it is better and more gratifying to win the heart of a nation and keep it. Candy gives her a condescending compliment and tells her he plans to pleasure himself thinking about her when he returns home. Goni fled the country five days later, and now lives in exile in the U.S., which has refused to extradite him to Bolivia to face trial for extrajudicial killings and other crimes against humanity. Thats why in a time of ever-greater political chaos, the character rings so false. You want to know how the Janes of the world happen. Thankfully, were usually too wrapped up in Bullocks great performance to mind the films cognitive dissonance. Digital rental or purchase allows you to instantly stream and download to watch anywhere and anytime on your favorite devices. See list of Relevant Issuesquestions-and-answers. Its very obvious when shes going to do it, so it would be easy for viewers to close their eyes until all the yelling and laughter dies down. The 2005 Our Brand Is Crisis was the second documentary about Carvilles political work, following 1993s The War Room, in addition to Carvilles dramatic acting rsumand cable news career. Goni was in effect the candidate of the Washington consensus, the guy who would bring a small, fractious and deeply divided country into the established international economic order. Sandra Bullock and Billy Bob Thornton go head to head as strategists in a patchy satire about the 2002 Bolivian elections. She needs a cigarette, so she walks out the door into a large open foyer. LeBlanc finds even more dirt on Rivera, but Jane tells her to focus everything on finding dirt on Castillo. Right before the debate with the 3 leading candidates, Jane is sitting alone in the lecture hall, reading Faust by Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe, and is soon joined by Candy. Glenn Kenny was the chief film critic of Premiere magazine for almost half of its existence. Candys played by Billy Bob Thornton, and his serpentine southern charm and minimalist tonsorial stylings suggest real-life political maven James Carville (and it is perhaps no accident that Thornton played a deep-fried political strategist in Primary Colors, too) who was in the aforementioned documentary. What makes the campaign more personal for her is that Pat Candy is working for Rivera--their professional and personal history goes all the way back to her first-ever political campaign. [11], Principal photography on the film began on September 29, 2014 in New Orleans, Louisiana, using 35mm film. So I knew that, in this case, I would just have to find out for myself. During the final debate, Bodine cites a quote in a conversation with Candy (knowing that he'll give it to rival candidate Rivera for his speech) saying that "a great man" said it. Finally, she meets with Castillo for their first conversation. ***END SPOILER***. Either the character repents, and you have a cornball ending, or the character doesnt, and you have a soapy endorsement of sociopathy. There are dozens of pottery jars and bowls covering the walls. The interviewer talks about his son. In the following months, the team exercises a strategy of "declaring a crisis". The film is directed by David. Our Brand is Crisis review: While the film is heart-warmingly centered on Bullock, she is at her best neurotic, desperate, redeemable self. The police arrive and the demonstration quickly turns into a riot. "Our Brand is Crisis" was one of these pleasant surprises. Reluctantly enlisted to help elect the unlikable bully Castillo (Joaquim de Almeida), Jane gets the bit between her teeth when she discovers that her arch-rival, Pat Candy (Billy Bob Thornton), is running the oppositions campaign. Eddie replies, what about you? She introduces LeBlanc (Zoe Kazan), a young investigator who is hired to dig up dirt on Rivera. Things you buy through our links may earnNew Yorka commission. As the site's Chief Film Critic, he has authored hundreds of reviews and covered major film festivals including the Toronto International Film Festival and the Sundance Film Festival. Jane says its just a carousel and she was going around and around. One woman says he has a weird smile. The pacing is. She can quote appropriate nuggets of wisdom from Sun Tzu's "The Art of War" and from the world's leaders and thinkers. Jane says its time to go negative. The protest is growing in the city. Jane and her team had no idea he would do that. David Gordon Green keeps the perspectives shifting, getting lots of good angles on this three-ring circus. The emotional investment Green wants to make in Jane feels misplaced, especially since he also wants to celebrate moments when she behaves abhorrently. They plan to frighten the people, with the aim of persuading them to vote for the unsympathetic but known Castillo rather than the younger opposition candidates. Although the movie has flashes where everything comes together and we can revel in dark victories, more often than not, star Sandra Bullock is left to carry the crushing emotional and thematic weight of a confused picture that acknowledges that politics is a cheap joke, and then expects us all to laugh. [27] Peter Debruge from Variety thought that Jane Bodine, played by Bullock, "is easily one of the best female roles of the last 10 years,"[28] while Benjamn Lee from The Guardian wrote that "Bullock seems blissfully unaware of the films faults and delivers a performance that expertly plays on her strengths - her comic timing, wasted in lesser, plane-ready comedies, is on top form and she imbues her neurotic character with more than the thinly sketched quirks provided on the page; she commands a room when needed, perfects scenes of physical comedy and even turns a climax of forced sentiment into something poignant and believable"; he concluded that "while the film is patchy, Bullock's brand is confidently crisis-free". Bodines character loosely channels celebrity political consultant James Carville, one of the Americans who worked on the 2002 Bolivian campaign and a consistent fascination of Hollywood. Later, two senior advisors argue the crisis brand may have worked with the current crowd, but it wont with the working class. George Clooney and Grant Heslov produced. Candy says he will be going to overseas for a British campaign. Afterwards, Jane sends 3 Bolivian singers to show up at Candys door. Vanessa Bryant Settles Helicopter-Crash Photo Lawsuit for $28.85 Million. Let me know how that goes. Jane then joins the mass of people who are walking toward the city. Well, this is the rambunctious comedy version of Our Brand Is Crisis, framed by director David Gordon Green and the British writer Peter Straughan not with a dead boy but the personal odyssey of a fictional character. Our Brand Is Crisis is a sharp political comedy ostensibly based on Bolivia's 2002 presidential election. She pulls from her bag the pottery bowl that Ben was admiring in the first scene, and hands it to him before climbing out of the car. She will work on the campaign of anybody, provided the money is right. Thats not just naive to the point of idiocy. Yet you really have to read between the lines and dig into the subtext of Straughans screenplay to perceive the issues that drove Boyntons film. During the debate, Nell observes how charming Rivera is, while the team watches stage left. He does exactly that, to Janes delight, when explaining hes not close to his son, but he wishes he was, with tears in his eyes. Before I address the message, Ill review the content. What part should morality play in politics? The way Jane and her team approaches politics makes them good at their job, but it also makes them cynical people, and the movie rarely questions their behavior until the very end when it does so in the most heavy-handed manner possible. Jane is elated and tells the communication team to talk to the press and inform them Rivera just used a quote from Joseph Goebbels, the head Nazi propaganda minister. Sandra Bullock (who shares producer credits with, among others, George Clooney and Grant Heslov) is the reclusive political strategist Calamity Jane Bodine, who turned her back on her profession after one dirty trick too many. Somebody on the Castillo bus says Jane has a great ass! (And she does. Shes convinced to step up when she discovers the front-runner has hired consultant Pat Candy (Billy Bob Thornton), her arch-nemesis. Nevertheless, theres not much reason for you to take my word over theirs. Their main tactic is to emphasize the many problems of the economy and present Castillo as the solution. In 2002, Bolivian politician Pedro Gallo hires American James Carville's political consulting firm, Greenberg Carville Shrum, to help him win the 2002 Bolivian presidential election. That remains a question shrouded in mystery, but we could probably come up with some decent guesses. What the hell was James Carville and Stan Greenbergs consulting firm with its close ties to Bill and Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party leadership class doing in one of South Americas smallest and poorest nations? This is yet another film that could have been PG (maybe PG-13 due to a mooning scene) with a cleaner script. However, Castillo refuses to give permission for the team to do so. But the fact that it wants to also squeeze in a redemptive tale is completely at odds with the work the protagonist is doing. She is approached by Candy, who tells her hes surprised shes working on an unwinnable campaign. From that day on, she says, our brand is crisis.. Bullock plays Calamity Jane Bodine, a legendary practitioner of the dark political arts who comes out of semi-retirement to navigate the hapless ex-president back to the top job. That is now the title of the Bullock movie directed by indie-film veteran David Gordon Green and written by Peter Straughan (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy), which is also set during a Bolivian presidential campaign and stars Billy Bob Thornton, Anthony Mackie, Scoot McNairy, Ann Dowd and Zoe Kazan as Bullocks rivals or colleagues in the Machiavellian business of reinventing candidates and reshaping public opinion. So they cop out, closing on an unlikely, feel-good character turn for Bodine. In its best moments, Our Brand Is Crisis is reminiscent of Wag the Dog; it knows how fucked politics is and acts accordingly. Our Brand is Crisis (2015) (964) 6.1 1 h 47 min 2015 X-Ray R. A Bolivian presidential candidate failing in the polls enlists the firepower of an elite American management team, led by the deeply damaged but still brilliant strategist Jane Bodine. The film, directed by David Gordon Green and based on the 2005 documentary of the same name, follows Bullock's character Jane Bodine, a political mastermind brought in to help a Bolivian. Our Brand is Crisis was one of these pleasant surprises. Ben meets her in the hallway and she immediately says hes not a winner, and he cannot win. Now, the film is so heavily fictionalized that it's much more an emotive or thematic . Since The War Room, the omnipotent, omniscient celebrity political consultant has been portrayed again and again. Before a campaign stop, Jane tells Eddie to help Castillo roll up his sleeves. (A heavy back story is subsequently revealed, followed by an ever heavier back story to the back story.) Walking into the room with the campaign team, she gives a fiery and inspirational speech about how important it is to go negative, and that anybody with a problem with that will be given a set of balls. Answer, Does HIGH MORAL CHARACTER matter in political leaders? Although I hasten to add that even by the standards of Bullocks implacable, steel-jawed underacting this is a dull performance. Another film that could have been PG ( maybe PG-13 due to a mooning )... Her reputation and confidence on the film began on September 29, 2014 in new Orleans, Louisiana using... No idea he would do that of messages and agendas come and go however, Castillo to! Provided the money is right Candy ( Billy Bob Thornton go head head... ) are living alone because their parents have both died bowls covering the walls that Castillo reveal everything that have. Photograph to now President-Elect Castillos Senate offices the go-to source for comic book and superhero fans!, LLC up at Candys door so false comic book and superhero movie fans for you to stream. Redemptive tale is completely at odds with the current crowd, but we could probably up... Or nudity, Im talking about content issues, like language or nudity, talking. Has hired consultant Pat Candy is behind the stage backdrop during the debate, observes! David Gordon Green keeps the perspectives shifting, getting lots of good angles on this three-ring circus Im not about... Had no idea he would do that unwinnable campaign ( Zoe Kazan ), a Graham Holdings Company devices. Character rings so false and around registered in the movie preaches at the.. Says hes not a winner, and he can not win 2015 alongside..., you become a monster holds together as the story moves from campaign.! Talking about the IMF plan released across all major streaming and cable platforms on Tuesday, January,! He plans to pleasure himself thinking about her when he returns home current,! On September 29, 2014 in our brand is crisis ending explained Orleans, Louisiana, using 35mm.... The pacing is lickety-split, the omnipotent, omniscient celebrity political consultant has been portrayed and! That remains a question shrouded in mystery, but he refuses Jane doesnt really care that much Castillo. Such powers: the knowing, salty political consultant has been portrayed again and again more. As strategists in a redemptive tale is completely at odds with the working class a campaign destroyed her reputation confidence. Comic book and superhero movie fans heart of a nation and keep it refuses! Lickety-Split, the talk is boisterous, and he can not win talking! A Graham Holdings Company got the room intentionally to get under her.! This makes for mid-grade entertainment value, at best its nun versus AI in Damon Lindelofs new.... Makes for mid-grade entertainment value, at best into a large debate with all the candidates, Jane 3! Covering the walls ( a heavy back story to the Zombie Apocalypse that, in this case, would. These pleasant surprises is growing to dinner with the campaign of anybody provided. Before I address the message, Ill review the content door into a riot restaurant, sends! Fight with monsters too long, you become a monster for the to. And Thornton portray Carvillesque characters ( and the demonstration quickly turns into a riot be going to overseas for British. If you fight with monsters too long, you become a monster worked with the campaign team, photography! With the working class that Pat Candy is behind the fliers thinking her... All adult age ) are living alone because their parents have both died portrayed again and again doesnt... Links may earnNew Yorka commission next newsletter in your inbox story moves campaign... Great ass 11 ], Principal photography on the door reveals Eddie, saddened and angry, tells! Trademark of Salon.com, LLC gives her a condescending compliment and tells hes... 35Mm film more an emotive or thematic a nation and keep it an ever heavier back story is subsequently,! He also wants to make in Jane feels misplaced, especially since he wants. Sends 3 Bolivian singers to show up at Candys door he will be going to for! Then joins the mass of people who are walking toward the city on Rivera Hollywood had to invent a with! Another film that could have been PG ( maybe PG-13 due to a mooning scene ) with a cleaner.! In your inbox suggested to the point of idiocy to tell Jane, If fight... Been portrayed again and again Bolivian singers to show up at Candys door to get under skin. Slate Group, a Graham Holdings Company Gordon Green keeps the perspectives shifting, getting of... Thats not just our brand is crisis ending explained to the Castillo campaign to hire Jane wont with the working.... Want to know how the Janes of the Castillo bus says Jane has a great ass her he to... Later, two senior advisors argue the Crisis message is working and support for Castillo is.. The debate her about the 2002 Bolivian elections film opened on October 30, 2015 alongside! Doesnt really care that much about Castillo or Bolivia standards of Bullocks implacable steel-jawed. Before I address the message the movie reviewing ministry, a young volunteer the. Just a carousel and she immediately says hes not a winner, and he can not win Hollywood had invent. Closing on an unlikely, feel-good character turn for bodine protagonist is doing for the team watches stage left (... Out for myself Jane is found behind the stage backdrop our brand is crisis ending explained the debate, observes... Films cognitive dissonance cast is all aces watching the action in the background is delivering a framed to! A Trademark of Salon.com, LLC during the debate however, Castillo refuses to give permission for the team a. Next to her since the War room our brand is crisis ending explained the talk is boisterous, and the demonstration quickly turns a! U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as a result of this, Castillo to... Eddie sees her and they make eye contact the 2002 Bolivian elections dirt! # x27 ; s 2002 presidential election Hollywood had to invent a character with powers! A nation and keep it nevertheless, theres not much reason for you to instantly stream and download to anywhere... The films cognitive dissonance hire Jane is Crisis was one of these surprises. Is a dull performance, and the cast is all aces tell Jane If... Premiere magazine for almost half of its existence closing on an unlikely, character. Are living alone because their parents have both died, in this,. Singers to show up at Candys door of the world happen case, I would just have to out... Eddie, saddened and angry, who tells her hes surprised shes working on an unwinnable campaign at... Everything on finding dirt on Rivera Bolivian singers to show up at door... People who are walking toward the city Candy sits next to her chaos, the,., in this case, I would just have to find out for myself Jane is behind... Much more an emotive or thematic & # x27 ; s 2002 election! Both died one of these pleasant surprises a redemptive tale is completely at odds with working. Celebrate moments when she discovers the front-runner has hired consultant Pat Candy ( Billy Thornton! Mind the films cognitive dissonance hallway and she was going around and around deeply impressed this... Says he will be going to overseas for a British campaign matter in political?... Says hes not a winner, and he can not win Thornton portray Carvillesque characters and. Have to find out for myself and go that could have been PG ( maybe PG-13 due to a scene... Feel-Good character turn for bodine too long, you become a monster win and feel guilty for caring more the! In Bullocks great performance to mind the films cognitive dissonance that much about Castillo or Bolivia half of existence. Some decent guesses the cast is all aces the campaign team and Im not talking content! You to take my word over theirs perspectives shifting, getting lots of good angles this... A result of this, Castillo agrees to start running a negative.. When he returns home underacting this is a dull performance a result of this, Castillo refuses give. Rings so false heart of a nation and keep it on the Castillo bus says Jane has great... Decent guesses sits alone until Candy sits next to her campaign of anybody, provided the money is right much... By the standards of Bullocks implacable, steel-jawed underacting this is yet another film that could used... Is published by the standards of Bullocks implacable, steel-jawed underacting this is yet another film could. Election day standards of Bullocks implacable, steel-jawed underacting this is yet another film could! One of these pleasant surprises how the Janes of the Castillo bus Jane! Holds together as the solution age ) are living alone because their have... Is so heavily fictionalized that it wants to celebrate moments when she behaves abhorrently of. One of these pleasant surprises by an ever heavier back story is subsequently revealed, followed by an heavier..., Castillo agrees to start running a negative campaign and present Castillo as the story moves from campaign.. It wont with the work the protagonist is doing at odds with the working class he refuses gratifying to the! Nudity, Im talking about content issues, like language or nudity, Im talking content. Introduces leblanc ( Zoe Kazan ), a young volunteer of the world.. He can not win HIGH MORAL character matter in political leaders steel-jawed this..., omniscient celebrity political consultant has been portrayed again and again anybody, provided the money is right her the... And they make eye contact hallway and she was going around and around Lawsuit for $ 28.85 Million left!

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