Movie Review: ‘The Apprentice’ | Moviephone
Opening in theaters on October 11, ‘The Apprentice’ feels both timely and of its time as it turns back the clock to the late 1970s and 1980s, where Donald Trump was still a wannabe real estate developer working for his father’s company who ran dream His own business empire, but initially lacked the connections –– despite his family’s clear opportunities –– to do so.
Ali Abbasi’s recent charts owe his rise to the influence of Palpatine-like nefarious, powerful lawyer Roy Cohn, and aim to dig under Trump’s skin to discover what’s leading to our problem today.
Related Article: Sebastian Stan to Play a Young Donald Trump in New Movie ‘The Apprentice’
Does ‘student’ work?
With the upcoming election on everyone’s mind, it’s only fitting that a movie is hitting theaters aimed at discovering where Donald Trump gets a lot of his business and general trust. ‘The Apprentice’ doesn’t appear to fully profile the man, but then, that’s not the point; It’s a tightly-focused story of his rise to business dominance in New York in the 1980s thanks to the support and advice of Roy Cohn, who sees something in Trump and encourages his less moral side with a mantra that includes “admit nothing, deny everything.” (Sound familiar?)
Truth and justice are completely malleable to these men, who use wealth and power to manipulate the world around them, and though the movie sometimes seems to let Trump off the hook for his behavior, it’s ultimately a compelling chronicle of his muddy morality.
Screenplay and direction
Author Gabriel Sherman has spent much of his career chronicling the rich and powerful, and he brings a wealth of research to the page here. Focusing almost entirely on Trump, he creates a solid and believable evolution (though perhaps evolution would be a better word) for the man on the page.
While ‘The Apprentice’ script sometimes falls into the old trap of this-happens-then-this-happens storytelling, there’s enough meat on the bones to keep it from feeling stale.
Director Ali Abbasi has generally worked from scripts he has written, including the excellent ‘Holy Spider’ and the excellent ‘Border’, and has brought both horror and fantasy to the screen. She’s a good choice for a real-life horror story, and her Iranian-Danish background means she has an outsider’s eye on her full, hilarious story.
Bringing the New York of the late 1970s and 1980s to the screen is no easy feat, especially for a movie that had to find a $16 million budget from a patchwork of companies and investors. But Abbasi infuses his film with punkish energy and keeps the story moving by getting a lot out of his two leads.
Performance
Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong dominate the screen here, while the likes of Maria Bakalova and Martin Donovan find support.
Sebastian Stan as Donald Trump
Stan is having a great year, delivering some of the best performances of his career in ‘A Different Man’ and now this one. Less of her impression of Donald Trump the man, more of a channeling of his malicious essence, though as she progresses through the story she becomes closer to Trump as most people would recognize him. While his work in ‘A Different Man’ seems more likely to garner awards attention, it’s not impossible that this transformation could see a potential trophy as well.
Jeremy Strong as Roy Cone
The ever-intense Strong (who spent a few years as the ambitious, neurotic Kendall Roy on ‘Legacy’) here sinks into the role of the powerful lawyer who seemingly led Trump to where he is today. It’s a brave performance by Strong, who imbues Cohn with a completely angry energy, but also charts his slow decline as Trump rises, and Cohn is affected by the AIDS epidemic in those around him and, ultimately, his own (though he insists) death. day that he has liver cancer). Kohn is a fascinating, frightening character, a puppet master whose creations elude him.
Maria Bakalova as Ivana Trump
Bakalova, best known for her breakout role in the ‘Borat’ sequel, has less to do than her co-stars, but she brings spirit and despite her role as Trump’s first wife. He is always watchable and works well with Stan.
Martin Donovan as Fred Trump
Trump’s overbearing father was a huge influence on his life and Donovan is great in the role, working artificial intelligence to bring him to life.
Supporting cast
Charlie Carrick (Trump’s brother Freddie, who goes from high-flying airline pilot to addicted burnout) and Mark Randall as Roger Stone have good work in relatively small (but influential) roles, who will become infamous. Trump’s chief adviser.
final thought
‘The Apprentice’ faces a battle for attention in theaters due to its divisive subject matter. Those who will be disappointed will surely be that it doesn’t completely demonize the man (although a few scenes based on more trumped-up charges certainly push that way, including how he treats Ivana), while Trump supporters will skip it and label it left-wing. Propaganda and “fake news.”
But taken on its own merits, it’s a valuable glimpse into a very troubled person.
‘The Apprentice’ is rated 7.5 out of 10 stars.
“An American Horror Story.”
Showtimes and tickets
A young Donald Trump, eager to make a name for himself as the starving scion of a wealthy family in 1970s New York, falls under the spell of Roy Cohn, a cutthroat attorney… Read Plot
What is the plot of ‘The Apprentice’?
A young Donald Trump (Sebastian Stan), eager to make a name for himself as the hungry second son of a wealthy family in 1970s New York, falls under the spell of Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong), who will help create Donald Trump. We know today.
Cohn sees in Trump the perfect guardian — someone with ambition, a hunger for success and a willingness to do whatever it takes to win.
Who is in the cast of ‘The Apprentice’?
- Sebastian Stan as Donald Trump
- Jeremy Strong as Roy Cone
- Maria Bakalova as Ivana Trump
- Martin Donovan as Fred Trump
- Ben Sullivan as Russell Eldridge
- Charlie Carrick as Fred Trump Jr
- Mark Randall as Daniel Sullivan
- Joe Pingu as Anthony Salerno