3SMReviews: Vice

Adam McKay wants to include everything in Vice, and that is the number one thing that sinks the movie.* How much more successful would this film have been if it had just focused on one issue like the Big Short did, perhaps Cheney’s use of the unitary executive theory? Also, despite the makeup and extra weight, Christian Bale never completely disappeared into Dick Cheney, though Amy Adams was good.

Verdict: Skip

Consider watching instead: The Big Short, The War Room

Cost: $10.50
Where watched: Cinema 21

*Also sinking the movie: the conundrum of making a biopic about someone who is intently private. Sure, you’ve got that disclaimer with the f-word at the beginning, but when a lot of your movie moments focus on private conversations, we can guess that those conversations were made from thin air. And then what do we really know about this person?