A recounting of the Recount in the aftermath of the 2000 Presidential election, Jay Roach's Recount is a made-for-HBO film that, as always, features a truly stacked cast. Focusing on the election, the hanging chad issue, and the ensuing legal battles in Florida and in the United States Supreme Court, the film is a truly riveting re-enactment of the events that transpired. However, it doesA recounting of the Recount in the aftermath of the 2000 Presidential election, Jay Roach's Recount is a made-for-HBO film that, as always, features a truly stacked cast. Focusing on the election, the hanging chad issue, and the ensuing legal battles in Florida and in the United States Supreme Court, the film is a truly riveting re-enactment of the events that transpired. However, it does feel entirely confined by its true story. Throughout, it is a film that feels too much like a re-enactment and not like a film, instead playing out like a History channel documentary that has people acting out the scenes that historians are discussing in interviews. This, along with some pro-Democrat bias along the way, does undermine Recount in the end, no matter how riveting its re-telling of the events surrounding the election are.
One of the most controversial moments of the 21st Century, the events and circumstances surrounding the election of George W. Bush as President over Al Gore are riveting. Director Jay Roach's film benefits from the natural tension of its story, delivering a constantly spell-binding political thriller. With an impassioned central performance from Kevin Spacey as Ron Klain, Gore's former Chief of Staff and a member of the team pursuing legal recourse, the film is one loaded with tension as Klain fights for what is right: counting the votes. Whether Bush or Gore won, finding out who everybody voted for in the archaic system used by Florida is the central issue. If Gore won, great. If Bush won, at least it was determined in a fair fashion. As Klain, Spacey delivers much of the emotion and tension in the film, being portrayed as a real American patriot. Despite his being on the Gore campaign, he makes it clear that he is not even sure he likes Gore himself. He just wants the truth to come out, which is a truly noble cause. On the other side, the team put together by Bush including former Secretary of State James Baker (Tom Wilkinson) are easy to root against as they try to suppress votes at all turns, refusing to admit there are issues.
Yet, therein lies the issue. As an underdog story, it is too easy to root for the Democrats and against the Republicans. Whether or not either side is the "bad guy" in this situation, Recount is a film that does try to be even in presentation, but never really succeeds. In particular, the portrayal of Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris (Laura Dern) is egregious. Dern is excellent, stealing the show entirely, but Harris is too comical, conceited, and stupid to be taken seriously. She is turned into a comedic punching bag, instead of a serious figure. Constantly shown as being the bad guy for not letting the Democrats push back the deadline - even if the law says she does not have to - Harris really does get a raw deal in the film. Here, the film really tips its hand as a Democrat-leaning work, further doubling down in its portrayal of Baker and Ben Ginsberg (Bob Balaban) as similarly comical figures who fight dirty (even if that is right route). By showing the Republicans as being dirty, corrupt, and employing lobbyists, Recount makes it too easy to root against them, even if the Democrats are just as bad as their opposition. Unfortunately, their determination to make their candidate president is shown as a heroic undertaking in the name of justice, which is not strictly true. Had Gore won, there is no way anybody on the blue side would care, instead they would play the same role as the Republicans: obstruction of recounting votes.
However, even if it is somewhat biased, the film is definitely riveting. Portrayed in a pseudo-documentary style, Recount walks the audience through the events surrounding the recount and ensuing court cases. Never getting bogged down in the minutia and managing to stay light and entertainment in spite of its heavy subject matter. Unfortunately, in the process of walking through everything, the film's commitment to details and a somewhat fractured flow each time a new character or plot point is introduced leads the film to feeling like a re-enactment and not a film. While the acting is largely good, it never allows the actors to disappear into their characters, instead leaving them as obvious portrayals and representations of the people so deeply involved with the recount. This somewhat limited and restricted feeling is what makes the film feel so slight at the end, an element hardly benefited by the film's status as a made-for-TV work.… Expand
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