Although The Ides of March is one of those movies my dad would have tried to get me to see and 12-year-old me would have wrinkled her nose at, the fourth film from director George Clooney is a well-written and acted film that dives into the last days of a presidential primary. While it may not be the “political thriller” the trailers are trying to sell you, the film is still engrossing and engaging.

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Simply put, The Ides of March focuses on the last few days of the Ohio democratic primary of Governor Morris (Clooney) versus his opponent Senator Pullman and how both candidates’ teams will pull out all the stops necessary in order to win. This includes Morris’ campaign manager, Paul (Phillip Seymour Hoffman), and press secretary, Stephen (Ryan Gosling), as well as Pullman’s campaign manager, Tom (Paul Giamatti) who all try to feed information to a New York Times reporter (Marisa Tomei) and garner the endorsement of a North Carolina senator (Jeffrey Wright).

Of course, with any campaign (and life itself) there are many complications, which mainly come in the form of a young intern named Molly (Evan Rachel Wood), who flirts with Stephen vehemently and could cause trouble for the election. The Ides of March show clearly what everyone knows but never sees for sure: running a campaign is incredibly difficult and stressful. Everyone is on edge and every single word is carefully dissected to the max.

If you have no interest in politics, The Ides of March might bore you to tears. It’s certainly not the type of movie that I normally gravitate towards myself. And it’s definitely not a “thriller” in any sense of the word. It doesn’t quite have the adrenaline or gravity to feel quite as intense as it should. The stakes are high in the film, but I didn’t necessarily feel its weight.

However, The Ides of March is an incredibly acted film. Gosling speaks volumes in quiet scenes where the camera settles on his face. The nuances of his performance (coupled with his amazing skills in Drive) prove what a talented actor he’s truly become. Clooney, of course, is great as usual as the golden boy who’s maybe not quite as ideal as previously thought. Hoffman and Giamatti are fantastic. While their parts are not quite as large as Gosling’s, both of these actors chew up the scenes they’re in. The weak link for me was Wood, who maybe I just have an irrational dislike for, but I thought her character was a little too one-note.

While the acting and the writing were top-notch, one (minor) beef I had with The Ides of March was the editing. There were just TOO many l-cuts for my liking, and it eventually got a little distracting for me.

The Ides of March deals with how an idealistic campaigner can turn jaded and cynical, which isn’t anything new or surprising these days. But, as always, it’s about the journey from A to Z, and, while The Ides of March isn’t thrilling or unexpected, the journey is full of impeccable performances.

--Darcie Duttweiler