The story of Dick Cheney, an unassuming bureaucratic Washington insider, who quietly wielded immense power as Vice President to George W. Bush, reshaping the country and the globe in ways that we still feel today.
Governor George W. Bush of Texas picks Dick Cheney, the CEO of Halliburton Co, to be his Republican running mate in the 2000 presidential election. No stranger to politics, Cheney's impressive resume includes stints as White House chief of staff, House Minority Whip and defense secretary. When Bush wins by a narrow margin, Cheney begins to use his newfound power to help reshape the country and the world.Written by
Jwelch5742
The film correctly credits (or blames) Frank Luntz for inventing the terms 'climate change' and 'death tax'. See more »
Goofs
The train seen briefly in the beginning of the movie showed modern diesels that were 30 years too new for the time period. See more »
Quotes
Anonymous:
Beware the quiet man. For while others speak, he watches. And while others act, he plans. And when they finally rest... he strikes.
See more »
Crazy Credits
Halfway through the end credits, there's an extra scene with one of the focus groups seen earlier in the film. One of the men starts claiming the film has a liberal bias. Another man starts debating this with him, the argument soon turns to the subject of President Trump and the first man physically attacks the other man for disparaging Trump. Two of the young women then start discussing the latest Fast and Furious movie, which "looks lit". See more »
Adam McKay is in the midst of a career reinvigoration. Will Ferrell couldn't be further from the deadly serious satire of his newest effort Vice, a biopic charting the rise of Dick Cheney, attempting to account for the stupendous amount of power he managed to secure through shrewd. cloak and dagger bureaucratic tactics.
To play the portly and grunting Cheney, McKay has enlisted Christian Bale, who once again proves his deftness at changing his body for a role, here sporting a formidable gut. Bale is occasionally arresting as Cheney, his reserved head sways and deep throaty voice exuding a subtle magnetism that spearheads the tale, especially in a memorable fourth wall breaking scene towards the close of the film wherein he assures the audience of his moral integrity. The other main players are competent, as you'd expect from Oscar bait fare of this nature, but barely approach the degree of nuance Bale commands- Amy Adams as Lynne Cheney though proficient in her portrayal can feel slightly one note (which is more a reflection of a script which doesn't afford her very complex characterisation. Steve Carell and Sam Rockwell as Donald Rumsfeld and George W Bush, while entertaining and occasionally amusing, see the potential of great character actors somewhat squandered in favour of caricature.
This brings us to the main issue with Vice - a clumsy sense of brio with regards to tone and structure. McKay's feature is almost never boring, but no one would accuse it of subtlety or discipline, especially in comparison to McKay's far superior preceding effort The Big Short. Vice shares that film's kinetic, non-sequitur laden editing style, but is far less complimentary with the narrative at the film's core in Vice's case. The Big Short boasted an immediacy that Vice's decade spanning story can't hope to recreate, and by consequence, the insertion of absurdist humour and archival footage can compromise the actual narrative and render the film more than a little indulgent. It also seems slightly hypocritical; McKay's enthusiastic and hyperactive style is at odds with Vice's "cradle to grave" seemingly conventional biopic structure. While McKay swinging for the fences is occasionally chuckle inducing (the use of narrator in the film is inspired even if it feels laboured at times, and a scene in which the Cheneys recite Shakespearean soliloquys is deserving of recognition) it ultimately leaves Vice feeling far more scattershot and less nourishing as a narrative.
Even so, Bale's entertaining performance and McKay's sardonic and gleefully nihilistic energy behind the camera ensures Vice is at the very least constantly diverting and unpredictable.
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Adam McKay is in the midst of a career reinvigoration. Will Ferrell couldn't be further from the deadly serious satire of his newest effort Vice, a biopic charting the rise of Dick Cheney, attempting to account for the stupendous amount of power he managed to secure through shrewd. cloak and dagger bureaucratic tactics. To play the portly and grunting Cheney, McKay has enlisted Christian Bale, who once again proves his deftness at changing his body for a role, here sporting a formidable gut. Bale is occasionally arresting as Cheney, his reserved head sways and deep throaty voice exuding a subtle magnetism that spearheads the tale, especially in a memorable fourth wall breaking scene towards the close of the film wherein he assures the audience of his moral integrity. The other main players are competent, as you'd expect from Oscar bait fare of this nature, but barely approach the degree of nuance Bale commands- Amy Adams as Lynne Cheney though proficient in her portrayal can feel slightly one note (which is more a reflection of a script which doesn't afford her very complex characterisation. Steve Carell and Sam Rockwell as Donald Rumsfeld and George W Bush, while entertaining and occasionally amusing, see the potential of great character actors somewhat squandered in favour of caricature. This brings us to the main issue with Vice - a clumsy sense of brio with regards to tone and structure. McKay's feature is almost never boring, but no one would accuse it of subtlety or discipline, especially in comparison to McKay's far superior preceding effort The Big Short. Vice shares that film's kinetic, non-sequitur laden editing style, but is far less complimentary with the narrative at the film's core in Vice's case. The Big Short boasted an immediacy that Vice's decade spanning story can't hope to recreate, and by consequence, the insertion of absurdist humour and archival footage can compromise the actual narrative and render the film more than a little indulgent. It also seems slightly hypocritical; McKay's enthusiastic and hyperactive style is at odds with Vice's "cradle to grave" seemingly conventional biopic structure. While McKay swinging for the fences is occasionally chuckle inducing (the use of narrator in the film is inspired even if it feels laboured at times, and a scene in which the Cheneys recite Shakespearean soliloquys is deserving of recognition) it ultimately leaves Vice feeling far more scattershot and less nourishing as a narrative. Even so, Bale's entertaining performance and McKay's sardonic and gleefully nihilistic energy behind the camera ensures Vice is at the very least constantly diverting and unpredictable.