Few folks will go out of their way to defend Jack Abramoff, the disgraced lobbyist who swindled Native American tribes out of millions, among other crimes.
But Kevin Spacey and co. did something unforgivable while making a film version of the Republican’s rise and fall. They made him human. That turned off critics who didn’t take kindly to a film showing Abramoff as a deeply flawed but complex man.
Here’s the Boston Globe echoing the thoughts of many other media outlets regarding the film: “‘Casino Jack’ is glib, fast-paced entertainment that barely leaves a mark – which, given the subject, is just plain wrong.”
“Casino Jack,” out on Blu-ray and DVD April 5, doesn’t sugarcoat Abramoff’s sordid behavior. But it does make him a bit less than a monster and tells his story in a rather entertaining fashion. That’s more than you can say about other political films of late, from the feeble “Lions for Lambs” to the strident “Fair Game.”
Films are typically applauded for bringing nuance to a particular subject. Actors routinely say, even when cast as very wicked characters, how vital it is to their performance to find the humanity within.
But when it came time to show a Republican punching bag as anything less than the devil incarnate, many film critics would have none of it.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member