"War has rules.
Mud wrestling has rules. Politics has no rules."
-Ross Perot
Will Ferrell comedies are pretty easy to conceive. Simply
drop the comedian into an environment like NASCAR or professional ice skating
and then let him run loose with his trademark absurdist ravings. And what
better place for those lunatic rants than the wacky world of politics.
Ferrell is Cam Brady, the Democratic Congressman for the
state of North Carolina. He has run unopposed since his election and is about
to enter his fifth term. That all changes when billionaire tycoons, Glen and
Wade Motch (John Lithgow & Dan Aykroyd as thinly veiled parodies of the Koch Brothers) take a vested interest in the election as means to bring cheap
Chinese labor to the U.S. The Motch Brothers choose Marty Huggins (Zach
Galifianakis), the tourism director for the small town of Hammond as their
candidate. Huggins is the son of Raymond Huggins (Brian Cox), a bigwig in the
Republican Party who has always seen Marty as a constant embarrassment. In
steps campaign manager Tim Wattley (Dylan McDermott), a shadowy fixer sent in
to butch up the effeminate Huggins. His chubby family is kept out of the public
eye while his pugs are replaced by more American dogs, a golden retriever and a
chocolate lab.
The Campaign was
written by Shawn Harwell (HBO's Eastbound
and Down) and Chris Henchy (The Other Guys) while Jay Roach handled directorial duties. Roach is best known for
directing Austin Powers and Meet the Parents. He's had experience in
political comedy as he helmed Recount
and Game Change for HBO. The Campaign isn't exactly razor sharp satire
and Roach's work here lies somewhere in between. The humor doesn't break any
new ground as the film depicts politicians has inept, greedy, and just plain
horny.
Ferrell plays it to the hilt as Brady is a concoction of
Bill Clinton, John Edwards, and Ferrell's own impression of George W. Bush.
He's an unrepentant philanderer spouting pedantic sound bites to rile up the
rubes ("America. Jesus. Freedom"). Meanwhile, Galifianakis recycles
his portrayal of his mustachioed "brother" Seth as Marty Huggins.
Their rivalry begins with trash talking and rises to absurd levels as Brady
drunkenly steals a police car and punches a baby in the face. At one point,
Brady runs a campaign ad connecting Huggins' facial hair to that of Saddam
Hussein and bin Laden. There's a dinner
table scene at the Huggins house that's reminiscent of Talladega Nights. Dylan McDermott and Karen Murayama provide funny
supporting performances with the latter as a housekeeper paid extra to speak
like a stereotypical mammy.
The Campaign lacks
any teeth as the filmmakers try their best to straddle the thin line between
red and blue states. They attempt to skewer everyone with gags relying on
raunchiness and slapstick. If you want profanity and intelligence in your
satire, Armando Iannucci's In the Loop
is a better bet. Still, The Campaign
is amusing enough and moves at a brisk pace.
Rating: ** ½ (*****)
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