If you were old enough to remember the Presidency of George W. Bush, from 2001-2008, it was quite the time to be alive. There’s many things to reminisce about, some good, some bad, and some out right unforgettable. Conspiracy theories aside, many people believed Bush was the puppet and Dick Cheney was the mastermind pulling the strings as America geared up for war after the 9/11 attacks.
VICE could be considered bias portrayal of the former Vice President, your opinion will all depend on what color you bleed. Quite honestly I went into this drama expecting it to be a comedy based on what I know about the guy and how corrupt he conducted business. There are laugh out loud moments to lighten the mood, which were specifically thrown in to cut up the dry material of a power hungry guy using every word in law books to increase his power.
Ultimately what people will take away from this film is another body changing performance from Christian Bale. A decade ago he was Batman and now he’s an over weight heart attack prone fat guy who did everything he could to be President, without actually being the President. Amy Adams gives us another holiday blockbuster performance which could get her into award conversations, but this will really be about Bale. I loved that Sam Rockwell (who has grown on me lately) was selected to play W. because he can play dumb with the best of them.
VICE touches on Cheney’s health problems, shady business dealings, troubles in his personal life, and his cut throat mentally when he got inside the White House. Anyone who loves history will embrace the major events that Cheney found himself in connected with, while getting a deeper understanding of the man with the checkered past. It is safe to say VICE won’t win an Oscar for best picture, it won’t even be the greatest biography about a political leader. In the end it will entertain and offer some insight on the most powerful Vice President of all-time. 7/10
Ten Stars or Less 
I finally wrangled my thoughts together to put out a review but it wasn’t easy for me. The material is definitely there for a good movie. I ended up hating this thing. I felt McKay smothered out any good story and even his characters with his politics. And expected politics in the movie, but I found this movie exhausting.
Like I said, I went in expecting a comedy and witness a comedy-drama. Politics aside, I learnt more about who the man was before his days as VP. I was blown away by so much and Bale sold it so well. His Golden Globe speech was no lie because the man was really evil, but the movie achieved what it set out to do, tell people who didn’t know his story. I didn’t feel like the Republican agenda was forced upon me, I just took it as these masterminds were powerful within their party and used the system to their advantage. I know the material isn’t for everyone and those die-hards will hate how their hero is portrayed. It will be a hit and a miss for so many.