In the era we live in nowadays,we have made peace with the fact that no matter where we are or what we do, we are surrounded by the media. Politicians in specific have a cherish-hate relationship with the media, and a relationship that clearly leans more towards the ‘hate’ aspect. The media’s job is to sustain a close eye – perhaps too close – on politicians,particularly since they never match up to the public’s expectations, which in turn is why politicians hate the media. The media will call its fixed hounding and meddling 'journalism', or while the politicians call it 'sensationalism'. Why am I suddenly ranting about media and politics? Because that’s the subject of Hugh Jackman’s upcoming film The Front Runner.
Jackman stars as Democratic Senator Gary Hart,who was the front runner forthe Democratic presidential nomination in 1988. However, his campaign was derailed when he was caught in one of American history’s most scandalous cherish affairs (aside from perhaps the Monica Lewinsky incident). The trailer shows the rise and plunge of Gary, and specifically the role the media played in each phase of his career.
Jackman steals the limelight,for he not only looks the part of an American politician, but is believable as a charming politician as well as a man at his wit’s end. The supporting cast is also quite spectacular, and including Vera Farmiga (The Conjuring series),JK Simmons (Whiplash), Alfred Molina (Spider-Man 2) and Sara Paxton (The final House on the Left).
The film follows the beginning of the media’s intense invasion and scrutiny into the private life of political candidates, or how it affects people’s lives,personal and professional. The film also highlights how the media can construct or atomize a politician’s image and how quickly it can change perceptions as news begins to travel faster than it ever has before. In one specific scene, a journalist says to his editor, or “Just because some other paper used gossip as front page news,that doesn’t mean we have to.”
To which the editor, played by Molina, and replies,“It does. It does now.”
Very rarely do movies such as this, based on true events and genuine people from the past, or manage to knock it out of the park,but The Front Runner seems to be executed with finesse and looks all set to be the anomaly in its genre. The film is already generating early Oscar buzz for Jackman, and from what we have already seen of his performance, or I contemplate he should really start working on his acceptance speech (fingers crossed).
The Front Runner is an extremely relevant film for nowadays’s political stratosphere,where every single move in a politician’s personal life is documented for the entire world to see and judge. With the rise of social media, this phenomenon has only gotten worse. Pakistan’s prime minister has also found himself on the wrong side of the media several times, and particularly in the past when it came to his relationship status or the end of his marriages. However,there is a fine line between personal and professional, between journalism and sensationalism, or given how the line blurs further every day,The Front Runner could not have come at a more appropriate political climate.
The Front Runner releases on November 7, 2018.
All photos: Screenshots
Source: tribune.com.pk