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IMDbPro

Tanner '88

  • TV Mini Series
  • 19881988
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 5h 53m
IMDb RATING
7.9/10
897
YOUR RATING
Tanner '88 (1988)
ComedyDrama
A behind-the-scenes look at a former Michigan U.S. Representative's campaign as he vies for his party's Presidential nomination.A behind-the-scenes look at a former Michigan U.S. Representative's campaign as he vies for his party's Presidential nomination.A behind-the-scenes look at a former Michigan U.S. Representative's campaign as he vies for his party's Presidential nomination.
IMDb RATING
7.9/10
897
YOUR RATING
  • Stars
    • Michael Murphy
    • Pamela Reed
    • Daniel Jenkins
  • Stars
    • Michael Murphy
    • Pamela Reed
    • Daniel Jenkins
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 9User reviews
    • 21Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Won 1 Primetime Emmy

    Episodes11

    Browse episodes
    TopTop-rated
    1 Season
    1988

    Photos14

    Tanner '88 (1988)
    Tanner '88 (1988)
    Tanner '88 (1988)
    Michael Murphy in Tanner '88 (1988)
    Tanner '88 (1988)
    Michael Murphy in Tanner '88 (1988)
    Tanner '88 (1988)
    Pamela Reed in Tanner '88 (1988)
    Tanner '88 (1988)
    Michael Murphy in Tanner '88 (1988)
    Tanner '88 (1988)
    Tanner '88 (1988)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Michael Murphy
    Michael Murphy
    • Jack Tanner
    Pamela Reed
    Pamela Reed
    • T.J. Cavanaugh
    Daniel Jenkins
    Daniel Jenkins
    • Stringer Kincaid
    Matt Malloy
    Matt Malloy
    • Deke Connors
    Ilana Levine
    Ilana Levine
    • Andrea Spinelli
    Cynthia Nixon
    Cynthia Nixon
    • Alex Tanner
    Jim Fyfe
    Jim Fyfe
    • Emile Berkoff
    Veronica Cartwright
    Veronica Cartwright
    • Molly Hark
    Frank Barhydt
    • Frank Gatling
    Sandra Bowie
    • Stevie Chevalier
    Wendy Crewson
    Wendy Crewson
    • Joanna Buckley
    Kevin J. O'Connor
    Kevin J. O'Connor
    • Hayes Taggerty
    Richard Cox
    Richard Cox
    • David Seidelman
    Greg Procaccino
    • Barney Kittman
    E.G. Marshall
    E.G. Marshall
    • Gen. John Tanner
    Andy Stahl
    Andy Stahl
    • Molly's Crew
    Harry Anderson
    Harry Anderson
    • Billy Ridenhour
    Stephen Kelly
    • Molly's Crew
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Aaron Sorkin has acknowledged that this miniseries had an influence on The West Wing (1999), which he created, in its underlying idealism, and in its view of political staffers as people who at least struggle to do the right thing.
    • Quotes

      [making a toast at his son's wedding rehearsal dinner]

      Tanner's Father: One hundred years ago, William Gladstone, after a particularly acrimonious debate in Parliament, bellowed across the floor at his arch-rival Benjamin Disraeli, "You, sir," he said, "will one day end your days on the gallows or of venereal disease." Disraeli raised himself up and replied, "That, sir, would depend on whether I embrace your principles or your mistress."

      Alex Tanner: Grandpa.

      Tanner's Father: I tell this humorous story because it hasn't been altogether clear to me this past year exactly what my son is embracing.

      Jack Tanner: Dad!

      [Jack's fiancee gets up from the table and leaves]

    • Alternate versions
      As a prelude to the first screening of the sequel _"Tanner on Tanner" (2004) (mini)_, the original mini-series was shown again on the Sundance Channel (in the US) and BBC 4 (in the UK). The re-release was subtitled "Once More in '04", and each episode was preceded by a newly filmed introduction, in which one of the main characters talks to camera about their memories of the '88 campaign, 16 years on.
    • Connections
      Featured in Luck, Trust & Ketchup: Robert Altman in Carver Country (1993)

    User reviews9

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    10/10
    Altman and Trudeau Are a Match Made in Movie Heaven
    After a contentious decade for Robert Altman, during which he was pretty much shunned by the Hollywood system and made some of his worst films, it's only fitting that he should cap the decade off with an absolute triumph, this absorbing mini-series made for HBO.

    I don't know why it took so long for someone to pair "Doonesbury" writer Garry Trudeau with Altman, because in retrospect, it seems like a match made in heaven. Both have the exact same sarcastic sense of humor and the talent for seeing the absurd in the mundane. They crafted a fascinating look into the world of political machinations, following the story of fictitious 1988 presidential candidate Jack Tanner but setting it against the real world of the democratic primaries. Therefore, actual members of the political scene at the time interact with star Michael Murphy as if he's a real presidential nominee, and the viewer is never sure what action is authentic and what is staged.

    Murphy is superb as Tanner, and he's perfectly cast. Tanner is handsome and charismatic enough to make a fairly successful run for the nomination, but he's too bland and too nice to make it all the way. The series examines one of the major conundrums about American politics: to have a candidate with conviction and good ideas isn't enough. He must also be a personality and be able to navigate the tricky terrain of the American media, with the result that those who go farthest are those who know how to work the system, not those who are most honest. "Tanner '88" captured perfectly my own feelings about presidential elections. On the one hand, they're of supreme importance, because they determine who will be the leader of one of the most powerful nations in the world. But on the other hand, they seem like such pointless exercises, and it's hard to muster up the energy to care time after time.

    But one of the strongest and most serious points made by this series comes in an episode in which Tanner visits the slums of Detroit in his home state of Michigan. He realizes that he is completely out of touch with the very people he promises to help, and has no clue about what their lives are really like. That's painfully true about our own leadership -- it was in 1988 and still is today. There's a vast and probably insurmountable gap between the privileged few who ever have the remotest hope of being president and the millions of average Americans over whom they govern.

    All of the acting in "Tanner '88" is sensational, to the point where I forgot I wasn't just watching real people being filmed by a documentary filmmaker. Most notable are Pamela Reed, as Tanner's campaign manager, Cynthia Nixon, as his overbearing and very young daughter, and E.G. Marshall, who makes a few memorable appearances as Tanner's awful father.

    This is a must see for Altman fans, or really anyone with an interest in American politics.

    Grade: A+
    helpful•6
    0
    • evanston_dad
    • Jun 27, 2008

    Details

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    • Release date
      • February 15, 1988 (United States)
      • United States
      • Criterion Collection
      • English
    • Also known as
    • Production company
      • Home Box Office (HBO)
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • 5 hours 53 minutes
      • Color
      • Mono

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