Written by: David Himmelstein
Starring: Richard Gere, Julie Christie, Gene Hackman, Kate Capshaw, Denzel Washington
Rating: [3/5]
When in positions to command respect, it becomes quite evident why individuals claw onto them far longer than they should. Look at the politicians of this nation staying in these positions well into their 80s not because of the pleasure of acting as a public servant but the power this position provides them. Aptly titled, Power looks right at the seductive and destructive nature of the very word and the way individuals wield it to their advantage and the detriment of others.
Acclaimed for his ability to get his candidates elected, Pete St. John (Richard Gere) takes on the case of a businessman hoping to gain a seat in the United States Senate. When taking on this new client, he must contend with the new public relations firm hired by the candidate fronted by Arnold Billings (Denzel Washington) who seeks to make his job much more difficult to a dangerous degree.
A political thriller directed by the trusted hands of Sidney Lumet brings the large promise of something quite fantastic as experiencing any of his previous films would confirm. Adding in the talents of Denzel Washington, Richard Gere, Gene Hackman, and Julie Christie sets everything up for a tremendous feature. While this film does not stack up to the height of what Lumet can do as a filmmaker, it still contains plenty to enjoy.
Operating in this political realm of Washington DC politics, this feature approaches a knowingly corrupt process and really peels back the layers in demonstrating the damaging actions these individuals would make for the purpose of maintaining power. This mostly appears in face-offs between Pete and Arnold as they face off in a game of who can gain the upper hand. At times becoming a measuring contest, these two go head-to-head to demonstrate who can do their job better than the other making for some eye-opening conversations and incidents. One would think the game of electing someone should have a purity of trying to help others through speaking for the electorate and should have some semblance of cleanliness. Well, if anyone still had questions, this feature seeks to clear up any remaining hope.
The circumstance these characters put each other through makes for some incredibly tense moments between the characters. There’s even a scene where Pete believes a truck wants to run him off of the road, pretty much summing up the lengths these individuals would go to in order to gain the upper hand and force their will on the other. A sense of paranoia continues to build throughout the feature as the tactics get dirtier and the methods begin to get into the psyche of Pete as he tries to get a handle on everything going on.
While admittedly not getting the appeal of Richard Gere in the films he has done, this feature presents the closest opportunity I’ve had to see the charm others love about him. In this feature, he presents such a smug character but one with the necessary charisma to make me believe others have the same respect for him as the audience should in the way he navigates these interactions with individuals to get his way. Certainly, a talent aiding him in his previous pursuits and one that certainly will prove quite important if he wants this situation to land in a victory for him. Coupled with a devilishly good performance put on by Denzel Washington in providing the adversarial counterpart to Gere’s Pete allows these two to provide some strong work. This character allows Washington to portray such a conniving character in an evil way, which does not happen too often throughout his illustrious career.
Certainly not matching up to his far superior political works, Sidney Lumet still manages to make something quite crafty and enjoyable in Power. He demonstrates the power of public relations in helping a candidate reach the top but highlights the dirty work done by those in the shadows of the campaign ensuring everything runs the way it needs to or else. Plenty to enjoy in this feature even if it contains some mishaps along the way throughout its plot. When something like this sits as one of a director’s lesser works, it proves the quality of filmmaker we had on our hands with Lumet and he continually displayed why.
Films with Josh 