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      The Candidate

      PG Released Jun 29, 1972 1h 50m Comedy Drama List
      89% 36 Reviews Tomatometer 74% 5,000+ Ratings Audience Score Without a candidate to run for the senate seat against admired Republican Crocker Jarmon (Don Porter), campaign manager Marvin Lucas (Peter Boyle) recruits leftist lawyer Bill McKay (Robert Redford). McKay's appearance piques the public's interest, and gradually Lucas pushes McKay toward a more centrist message. As McKay's original and honest platform gets watered down, his popularity increases so much that he is running even with Jarmon as Election Day approaches. Read More Read Less Watch on Fandango at Home Premiered Dec 06 Buy Now

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      Critics Consensus

      The Candidate may not get all the details right when it comes to modern campaigning, but it captures political absurdity perfectly -- and boasts typically stellar work from Robert Redford to boot.

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      Audience Reviews

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      John O Spoilers: Proving yet again that every woman, and some men, in America would vote for Robert Redford for president. For life. Or longer. And he knows how to make a bundle on a good movie, like this one. It is politics in big terms and a stab at inside baseball that works even if it isn't verisimilitude. The broad strokes are Democrats even 50 years ago put people first, and Republicans put businessmen and other donors first. The scene in which McKay makes fun of his own repetitive speeches is played so well by Redford, complete with two Nixon-esque "V"ictory hand signs. It shows how personality can unwisely lead any considerations of policy in American politics then and now. The version I just watched cut the best line of the movie when Redford says to Peter Boyle, his veteran campaign manager, "I thought you told me I would lose." And Boyle says, "You did," as if being in the Senate is a loser's game. Did the powers that be lobby for that cut, too anti-establishment? The screenwriter won an Oscar and the documentary-style moving camera made the milieu seem real and full of energy, if not chaos. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/01/23 Full Review Steve D an inept, brainless, idealistic film that never convinces for a moment. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 03/18/23 Full Review Red T A Classic Pollical Drama Comedy. The acing is good across he board by the supporting cast but the real star is Robert Redford who gives a very well done performance. The cinematography is the best thing in this. It is shot in a documentary style with great gritty real shots and will switch to grand scale rallies and gatherings effortlessly. Despite the settings being normal and bland there is a huge variety of different locations in this as well that are all memorable. The music is the one weak spot here. It is a mix of patriotic/generic music score and it has an identity it never sounds memorable or catchy. The editing and pacing are very well done in this. The only complaints with those elements is the first 15 minutes can feel a bit uneven because your not sure if the Political consultant or McKay is the main character and it struggles to put a basic story together at times in a cohesive way. Also during the middle of the film while it is well done it can sometimes be a little to long. The Pacing over really is well done though as it is a slow but steady build up throughout. The comedy is very witty also and pretty much hit every time as well. This is a great character study in the changes of how candidates are elected, the value of electing officials, and asks just because someone wins an election does that make them a good politician also? Anyone who is a fan of political films, 70's films, Redford, or the director should give this a watch for sure. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Steve S Watch Redford as vacuous candidate as runs today and ever. These pols don't say anything but the same talking points over and over and over again. If the points sounds good, keep saying it. I'm almost surprised such a movie ever got made. Best scene: Redford in the back of a limo babbling and mixing up words as even he realizes how empty such words are. And of course the final scene: "what do we do now?" Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/13/21 Full Review Audience Member Has any other political drama aged better than The Candidate? Has any other film captured the ability of politics to grind down the idealist and stem the flow of progress better? Perhaps not. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/15/23 Full Review Audience Member I was shown this in social studies class in my senior year in high school decades ago. The liberal teacher used the movie to teach us how real-life political candidates are developed, and he asked us questions such as whether debates were truly useful except as publicizing candidates. The story itself: Bill McKay, son of a former machine politician governor of California, is talked into running for the Democratic candidate for U. S. Senator by a campaign manager who has just come off a losing election of another candidate. The manager expects McKay to lose anyway, so he tells McKay to say whatever he wants since it won't make any difference. But as the campaign goes on, the supposedly strong incumbent is vulnerable after all, and McKay wins the Democratic primary, and there is a serious chance McKay could really win the election. No longer can he just say what his beliefs are; he now has to draw in more voters who don't want a strong liberal. Solution: McKay has to be much more vague in answering questions (as directed by his managers), and to give generalized platitudes even his campaign team laugh at. He talks about unity and solving problems-but at the same time fails to tell the public what he intends to do about them. He wins anyway-and is confused as to what to do once he has the job. While it is true that an empty suit can win an election (look at who our current President is), the movie's inherent problem is that the movie doesn't really give a reason that McKay should have won over the incumbent. Longtime incumbents normally lose if demographics change greatly or if they alienate their constituency in some way; the movie depicts nothing of the sort. Also, McKay shows little enthusiasm for running throughout the whole campaign; surely there are others who would have wanted the spot instead? Still, if nothing else, the best part of the story was where the campaign manager is told to take a chair-and he does so, literally. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Critics Reviews

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      Jay Cocks TIME Magazine Neither the authentic political atmosphere nor canny performances by Redford, Boyle and Porter go far to cut through the basic glibness of the film. Jun 29, 2018 Full Review Dave Kehr Chicago Reader Much of it has a pleasing air of accuracy. But Redford's inability to suggest any irony about himself finally sinks it -- it's the only sanctimonious satire you'll ever see. Jun 29, 2018 Full Review Kim Newman Empire Magazine With Redford giving one of his best comedic performances, helped by a Oscar winning script, The Candidate is witty and charming, while looking good and proving quite memorable. Rated: 4/5 Jun 29, 2018 Full Review David Elliott Chicago Daily News The synthetic quality of The Candidate, along with its sacrifice of substance for image, should make it offensive. It isn't, however, because it never tries to milk our emotions and is such visible fun with itself. Oct 3, 2023 Full Review Brett Doze InSession Film The Candidate is both securely of its time while also featuring parallels to the performative aspects of the political system we continue to see today. Rated: A- May 1, 2023 Full Review Keith Garlington Keith & the Movies On the heels of one of the ugliest elections in American history, “The Candidate” is a light and frothy escape by comparison. Rated: 3.5/5 Aug 19, 2022 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis Without a candidate to run for the senate seat against admired Republican Crocker Jarmon (Don Porter), campaign manager Marvin Lucas (Peter Boyle) recruits leftist lawyer Bill McKay (Robert Redford). McKay's appearance piques the public's interest, and gradually Lucas pushes McKay toward a more centrist message. As McKay's original and honest platform gets watered down, his popularity increases so much that he is running even with Jarmon as Election Day approaches.
      Director
      Michael Ritchie
      Screenwriter
      Jeremy Larner
      Distributor
      Warner Bros. Pictures
      Production Co
      Warner Brothers/Seven Arts
      Rating
      PG
      Genre
      Comedy, Drama
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Theaters)
      Jun 29, 1972, Original
      Release Date (Streaming)
      Jan 1, 2008
      Runtime
      1h 50m
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