The Contender (2000)

Sexy secrets from a womans past come to light as she runs for Vice President.

Director:

Rod Lurie

Writer:

Rod Lurie

Stars:

Gary Oldman, Joan Allen, Jeff Bridges

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 1 win & 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gary Oldman	...	Shelly Runyon
Joan Allen	...	Laine Hanson
Jeff Bridges	...	President Jackson Evans
Christian Slater	...	Reginald Webster
Sam Elliott	...	Kermit Newman
William Petersen	...	Jack Hathaway
Saul Rubinek	...	Jerry Tolliver
Philip Baker Hall	...	Oscar Billings
Mike Binder	...	Lewis Hollis
Robin Thomas	...	William Hanson
Mariel Hemingway	...	Cynthia Charlton Lee
Kathryn Morris	...	Paige Willomina
Kristen Shaw	...	Fiona Hathaway
Douglas Urbanski	...	Makerowitz
Noah Fryrear	...	Timmy

Storyline

A political thriller about Laine Hanson, a senator who is nominated to become Vice President following the death of the previous office holder. During the confirmation process, Laine is the victim of a vicious attack on her personal life in which stories of sexual deviancy are spread. She is torn as to whether she should fight back, or stick to her high principles and refuse to comment on the allegations.

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Plot Keywords:

president | governor | bridge | death | fishing | 

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Taglines:

Welcome To The Greatest Show On Earth

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexual content and language

Details

Country:

USA Germany UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 October 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

La conspiración

Filming Locations:

Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£163,170 (UK) (20 April 2001)

Gross:

ESP 69,024,815 (Spain) (29 June 2001)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinerenta Medienbeteiligungs KG, Cinecontender, Battleground Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

126 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gary Oldman and co-producer Douglas Urbanski complained, after the film was released, that the film was changed from the more balanced script by Dreamworks Studios to reflect the liberal politics of the studios head at Dreamworks (Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen). The British Oldman, who according to long-time business partner Urbanski is "the least political person I know", was simply contending this since he didn't enjoy how negatively his character was portrayed. Dreamworks vehemently denied tampering with the film.

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Goofs

Timmy Hanson says "being the vice president is better than being the president...'cause nobody wants to shoot the vice president." That isn't quite true. In 1804 sitting vice president Aaron Burr infamously dueled against former secretary of the treasury, Alexander Hamilton. Hamilton's shot missed Burr while Burr's shot mortally wounded Hamilton, who died the next day. Burr was later tried for murder but acquitted. However, the character who says this is six years old, and probably does not have such an extensive history knowledge.

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Quotes

Shelly Runyon: We're both sticking to our guns. The difference is, mine are loaded.

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Crazy Credits

For our daughters

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Connections

References Jaws (1975)

User Reviews

A very accurate portrayal of women in politics

The Contender is a film with the potential to take any conscientious person with even a mild interest in how governments are run , and who the leaders are through a non-stop roller-coaster ride of challenge, triumph, pain, failure, and morality. Although I intensely appreciated this movie, I do not believe this could have been an oscar-winning film because the truths it expresses with regards to the presence of women in high ranking political positions far outway its acting and directing talents, with the possible exception of Gary Oldman's role as Shelly Runyon, who was frighteningly convincing at being an absolutely awful man. I enjoyed this movie because of its intention to show what women in politics really face. The strength displayed by Laine Hanson (Joan Allen) while up for vice president is nothing short of inspirational. Gary Oldman's character provides us with a good idea of how manipulative and ruthless people can be when in a position of power and, ironically, when they have been put in a position to judge another's morality. This film seems so realistic that we tend to forget it's a movie. It makes us question, why does a person have to be surrounded by such controversy and be forced to take on such a defensive position, simply for being a woman? What I appreciated is the refusal of Hanson to succomb to the pressure of taking that defensive position, regardless of the truth. Of course, the other refreshing aspect in this movie is Jeff Bridges' role as an ideal president.

All in all, it is a long overdue account of reality, with great character development but not recommended for those with short attention spans, as it is dialogue, and lots of it.