This particular Vice is well worth trying

Pivot is a relatively new term which has entered the political lexicon; it is a modern word for a good old-fashioned change of direction. Staying with the realm of politics there are few pivots that have been quite so remarkable in career terms as that of writer-director Adam McKay.

Just over ten years ago he has known for sublime low comedies such as Anchorman (2004), Talladega Nights (2006), and Step Brothers (2008). The last film coincided with the global economic crash which looks like the straw that broke this particular cinematic camel’s back. His next film looked like more of the same; it was The Other Guys (2010) which starred Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg in a knockabout cop comedy which, literally, had a sting in the tail.

The film itself turned on some stock market shenanigans but the end title sequence was a very funny, but very bitter, polemic about the financial crash and who exactly was responsible. Will Ferrell fans were possibly not the target demographic for such a rant but McKay had put a marker down.

Since then we have seen the end of the man-child comedies and instead McKay has brought his opinions to the mainstream. With The Big Short (2015) and now Vice there is a strong case to be made for McKay as America’s most political film maker, and since his films make money and win awards the studios love him for it.

The Big Short was an Oscar-winning satire on the financial crash in which McKay took the audience on an economic roller coaster ride. It was hard hitting but the impact was somewhat softened by the use of tropes such as breaking the fourth wall repeatedly to nod and wink to the audience. Vice is a horse of a distinctly darker colour.

It is acerbic and biting and although it is not without humour the laughs are tempered by the underlying story. The film is the story of Vice-President Dick Cheney (Christian Bale, above) who for McKay is one of American history’s greatest villains. Cheney was a drunken screw-up who, thanks to a wife (Amy Adams) who would give Lady Macbeth a run for her money, took advantage of the incompetence of George W. Bush (Sam Rockwell) to effectively stage a one-man coup.

Cheney learned his trade at the hands of his mentor Donald Rumsfeld (Steve Carrell) and it was through his influence that he was able to limit the role of the democratically-elected Congress and Senate and boost the limits of executive power. Cheney brought imperial status to the White House and set in place a lot of systems which are still being abused today.

In the process he took his country to war, monetised the conflict, and made himself a fortune. All of this, to paraphrase Keyser Soze, without anyone being aware that he even existed.

Plainly this is a very personal film for McKay. He lines Cheney up in his cross hairs very early on and never lets him out of his sight. The film’s one fault is that it never quite delivers a kill shot but it does leave the man and his reputation mortally wounded.

As in The Big Short, McKay uses a variety of techniques to keep the audience amused as they are appalled. The fourth wall is broken again, there are scenes delivered in Shakespearean verse, there is a very amusing cameo from Alfred Molina presenting the invasion of Iraq as a series of restaurant specials, and there is McKay’s now trademark mix of found footage with his own script. Also, without giving anything away, there are two remarkable coups de cinema which just take the breath away and indicate a director at the top of his game.

Much has, quite rightly, been made of the performances in this film. Bale is excellent as Cheney and Amy Adams is suitably conniving as his wife. The one I could not take my eyes off however was Steve Carrell as Rumsfeld, this is by far the best thing he has done and his presence looms over the proceedings like Banquo at the feast. His is the hand that turns the ambitious and eager to please intern into a man who was only a heartbeat away from dictatorship.

Vice is a film which, inevitably, divides audiences. You are either with it or against it, which is Cheney’s guiding mantra anyway, but the sharpness of the script, the quality of the performances, and the skill of the direction mean that you cannot ignore it.