''Our Brand Is Crisis'' is a 2015 American
comedy-drama film directed by
David Gordon Green
David Gordon Green is an American filmmaker. He directed the dramas ''George Washington'' (2000), '' All the Real Girls'' (2003), and '' Snow Angels'' (2007), as well as the thriller '' Undertow'' (2004), all of which he wrote or co-wrote.
In ...
and written by
Peter Straughan, based on the 2005 documentary
film of the same name by
Rachel Boynton. The film gives a fictionalized account of the involvement of American political campaign strategists
Greenberg Carville Shrum (GCS) in the
2002 Bolivian presidential election. The film stars
Sandra Bullock,
Scoot McNairy
John Marcus "Scoot" McNairy (born November 11, 1977) is an American actor and film producer. He is known for his roles in '' Monsters'', '' Argo'', ''Killing Them Softly'', ''12 Years a Slave'', '' Gone Girl'', and '' Batman v Superman: Dawn of ...
,
Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton (born August 4, 1955) is an American actor, filmmaker and musician. He had his first break when he co-wrote and starred in the 1992 thriller ''One False Move'', and received international attention after writing, directing, a ...
,
Anthony Mackie
Anthony Dwane Mackie (born September 23, 1978) is an American actor. Mackie made his acting debut starring in the semi-biographical drama film '' 8 Mile'' (2002). He was later nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Actor for his pe ...
,
Ann Dowd
Ann Dowd (born January 30, 1956) is an American actress. She has played supporting roles in numerous films, including ''Green Card'' (1990), ''Lorenzo's Oil'' (1992), ''Philadelphia'' (1993), '' Garden State'' (2004), '' The Manchurian Candidate' ...
and
Joaquim de Almeida
Joaquim António Portugal Baptista de Almeida (born 15 March 1957) is a Portuguese actor.
Almeida began his acting career in theatre during the 1980s, he started his film career appearing on the 1982 action film '' The Soldier'', and later ach ...
.
Principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...
began on September 29, 2014, in
,
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
.
George Clooney and
Grant Heslov
Grant Heslov (born May 15, 1963) is an American actor and filmmaker known for his producing and writing collaborations with George Clooney, which have earned him four Oscar nominations. As a co-producer of ''Argo'' (2012), he received the Academ ...
produced. The film was screened in the Special Presentations section of the
2015 Toronto International Film Festival
The 40th annual Toronto International Film Festival was held from 10 to 20 September 2015. On 28 July 2015 the first wave of films to be screened at the Festival was announced. Jean-Marc Vallée's '' Demolition'' starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Na ...
.
It was theatrically released by
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
on October 30, 2015. It received mixed reviews, despite Bullock's performance being largely praised, and was a
box office disappointment
A box-office bomb, or box-office disaster, is a film that is unprofitable or considered highly unsuccessful during its theatrical run. Although any film for which the production, marketing, and distribution costs combined exceed the revenue after ...
.
Plot
In 2002, Bolivian politician Pedro Castillo hires an American political consulting firm (based on
James Carville
Chester James Carville Jr. (born October 25, 1944) is an American political consultant, author, and occasional actor who has strategized for candidates for public office in the United States and in at least 23 nations abroad. A Democrat, he is a ...
's
Greenberg Carville Shrum firm) to help him win the
2002 Bolivian presidential election. The firm brings in "Calamity" Jane Bodine to manage Castillo's fledging campaign. The opposition's top political consultant is her nemesis, fellow American Pat Candy. In Bolivia, the situation is tense: Bodine learns that the indigenous people, who are a majority in the country but lack any real political power, are protesting for constitutional reform to get proper representation.
The American consultants, not knowing the language or the culture of Bolivia, are persuaded by Bodine, a burned out veteran of American politics, to follow a strategy of smear campaigning to make up for their candidate's shortcomings. However, Castillo refuses to give permission for the team to do so. It is only after Bodine arranges for the distribution of a flyer accusing Castillo of a long-ago affair (and blaming it on the opposition) does she finally get him to agree to smear his opponents.
In the following months, the team exercises a strategy of "declaring a crisis". They plan to frighten the people, with the aim of persuading them to vote for the unsympathetic but known Castillo rather than the younger opposition candidates. They even resort to publishing photos of their enemy with
Nazi
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
war criminal
Klaus Barbie
Nikolaus "Klaus" Barbie (25 October 1913 – 25 September 1991) was a German operative of the SS and SD who worked in Vichy France during World War II. He became known as the "Butcher of Lyon" for having personally tortured prisoners—primar ...
in the background, so that he has to deny being a Nazi. Castillo's bus is stopped by a group of protesters who don't want the
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster glo ...
in Bolivia. Castillo promises them that he will not invite the IMF without a public referendum. Eduardo, a young volunteer of the Castillo campaign, is deeply impressed by this show of commitment. His loyalty comes mostly from the fact that Castillo, who was president at the time, took a young Eduardo on his arm during a rally in his town. Nevertheless, his brothers are much more skeptical about Castillo.
During the final debate, Bodine cites a quote in a conversation with Candy (knowing that he'll give it to rival candidate Rivera for his speech) saying that "a great man" said it. Unfortunately, the quote is actually from
Joseph Goebbels,
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
's minister of propaganda. Castillo wins the vote by a small margin. As one of his first actions, he invites the IMF into Bolivia, thereby breaking his promise. The deeply disappointed Eduardo visits Bodine in her hotel; Bodine replies that she is not responsible for Castillo's actions. In her eyes, her job is done.
The disillusioned Eduardo joins his brothers at a demonstration of people demanding change. The police arrive and the demonstration quickly turns into a riot. Bodine and her crew join Candy on the way to the airport. All of them, except Bodine, have already taken jobs as political consultants in other countries. When Bodine realizes that she brought a liar into office, she has the car stopped and leaves to join Eduardo.
Cast
*
Sandra Bullock as 'Calamity' Jane Bodine,
a retired political consultant hired by an unpopular Bolivian politician to help him win the presidential election.
*
Scoot McNairy
John Marcus "Scoot" McNairy (born November 11, 1977) is an American actor and film producer. He is known for his roles in '' Monsters'', '' Argo'', ''Killing Them Softly'', ''12 Years a Slave'', '' Gone Girl'', and '' Batman v Superman: Dawn of ...
as Richard Buckley
*
Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton (born August 4, 1955) is an American actor, filmmaker and musician. He had his first break when he co-wrote and starred in the 1992 thriller ''One False Move'', and received international attention after writing, directing, a ...
as Pat Candy,
Jane's nemesis, who leads the opposition's campaign.
*
Anthony Mackie
Anthony Dwane Mackie (born September 23, 1978) is an American actor. Mackie made his acting debut starring in the semi-biographical drama film '' 8 Mile'' (2002). He was later nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Actor for his pe ...
as Ben
*
Ann Dowd
Ann Dowd (born January 30, 1956) is an American actress. She has played supporting roles in numerous films, including ''Green Card'' (1990), ''Lorenzo's Oil'' (1992), ''Philadelphia'' (1993), '' Garden State'' (2004), '' The Manchurian Candidate' ...
as Nell
*
Joaquim de Almeida
Joaquim António Portugal Baptista de Almeida (born 15 March 1957) is a Portuguese actor.
Almeida began his acting career in theatre during the 1980s, he started his film career appearing on the 1982 action film '' The Soldier'', and later ach ...
as Pedro Castillo,
the Bolivian Presidential candidate who hires Jane.
*
Zoe Kazan
Zoe Swicord Kazan (; born September 9, 1983) is an American actress, playwright, and screenwriter. She made her acting debut in the film ''Swordswallowers and Thin Men'' (2003) and later appeared in films such as '' The Savages'' (2007), ''Revol ...
as LeBlanc, a researcher who specializes in digging up dirt on candidates.
* Reynaldo Pacheco
as Eduardo, a young volunteer who befriends Jane.
* Dominic Flores
as Hugo
* Louis Arcella
as Rivera
* Octavio Gómez Berríos
as Pepe
* Luis Chavez as Abraham
* Tilda Del Toro as Pedro Castillo's secretary
*
Carmela Zumbado as a reporter (cameo)
* Ricardo Vargas as Campaign Worker
Production
On April 22, 2007, it was announced that
George Clooney would produce a dramatization of the 2005 documentary ''
Our Brand Is Crisis'', along with
Grant Heslov
Grant Heslov (born May 15, 1963) is an American actor and filmmaker known for his producing and writing collaborations with George Clooney, which have earned him four Oscar nominations. As a co-producer of ''Argo'' (2012), he received the Academ ...
, and
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
would handle American distribution rights.
Peter Straughan was set to write the script, with Clooney attached as a potential director and star for the film, about the
2002 Bolivian presidential election's campaign by
James Carville
Chester James Carville Jr. (born October 25, 1944) is an American political consultant, author, and occasional actor who has strategized for candidates for public office in the United States and in at least 23 nations abroad. A Democrat, he is a ...
's Washington, D.C.-based political consulting firm ''
Greenberg Carville Shrum'', which was hired by candidate
Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada
Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada Sánchez Bustamante (born 1 July 1930), often referred to as Goni, is a Bolivian businessman and politician who served as the 61st president of Bolivia from 1993 to 1997 and from 2002 to 2003. A member of the Revolu ...
.
On December 11, 2013,
Sandra Bullock was in early talks to star in the film, while Clooney chose not to direct, and his starring in the film was also unconfirmed at that time.
On August 21, 2014, Bullock's casting was confirmed, playing a retired political consultant called 'Calamity' Jane Bodine, and
David Gordon Green
David Gordon Green is an American filmmaker. He directed the dramas ''George Washington'' (2000), '' All the Real Girls'' (2003), and '' Snow Angels'' (2007), as well as the thriller '' Undertow'' (2004), all of which he wrote or co-wrote.
In ...
was set to direct the film.
On September 11,
Scoot McNairy
John Marcus "Scoot" McNairy (born November 11, 1977) is an American actor and film producer. He is known for his roles in '' Monsters'', '' Argo'', ''Killing Them Softly'', ''12 Years a Slave'', '' Gone Girl'', and '' Batman v Superman: Dawn of ...
was added to the cast.
On September 15,
Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton (born August 4, 1955) is an American actor, filmmaker and musician. He had his first break when he co-wrote and starred in the 1992 thriller ''One False Move'', and received international attention after writing, directing, a ...
joined the film,
and on September 18,
Anthony Mackie
Anthony Dwane Mackie (born September 23, 1978) is an American actor. Mackie made his acting debut starring in the semi-biographical drama film '' 8 Mile'' (2002). He was later nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Actor for his pe ...
joined the cast.
On September 24,
Ann Dowd
Ann Dowd (born January 30, 1956) is an American actress. She has played supporting roles in numerous films, including ''Green Card'' (1990), ''Lorenzo's Oil'' (1992), ''Philadelphia'' (1993), '' Garden State'' (2004), '' The Manchurian Candidate' ...
joined the film.
On October 10,
Joaquim de Almeida
Joaquim António Portugal Baptista de Almeida (born 15 March 1957) is a Portuguese actor.
Almeida began his acting career in theatre during the 1980s, he started his film career appearing on the 1982 action film '' The Soldier'', and later ach ...
and
Zoe Kazan
Zoe Swicord Kazan (; born September 9, 1983) is an American actress, playwright, and screenwriter. She made her acting debut in the film ''Swordswallowers and Thin Men'' (2003) and later appeared in films such as '' The Savages'' (2007), ''Revol ...
joined the cast, with Almeida playing Castillo, the former president of Bolivia, and Kazan playing a young woman who finds dirt on political candidates.
On October 13, 2014,
Participant Media announced that they would co-finance the film with Warner, while
Jeffrey Skoll
Jeffrey Stuart Skoll, OC (born January 16, 1965) is a Canadian engineer, billionaire internet entrepreneur and film producer. He was the first president of eBay, eventually using the wealth this gave him to become a philanthropist, particularly ...
and Jonathan King would executive produce, along with Bullock and
Stuart M. Besser
Stuart Besser is a film producer with more than 25 years of experience and has appeared as an actor in one film, ''Identity (2003 film), Identity''.
Filmography as producer
*''The People Under the Stairs''
*''The Break-Up''
*''Vampire in Brookl ...
.
More casting was also announced, which included Reynaldo Pacheco, Dominic Flores, Louis Arcella, and Octavio Gómez.
Principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...
on the film began on September 29, 2014 in
,
Louisiana
Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
, using 35mm film. Filming also took place in the
Bonnet Carré Spillway in
Norco in
St. Charles Parish. Additional filming occurred in Puerto Rico and Bolivia.
Release
In July 2015,
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...
scheduled the film for an October 30, 2015 release, during the awards season. It had a wide release in 2,202 theaters for 21 days.
Reception
Box office
''Our Brand Is Crisis'' grossed $7 million in North America and $1.6 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $8.6 million, against a budget of $28 million.
The film opened on October 30, 2015, alongside ''
Burnt'' and ''
Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse
''Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse'' is a 2015 American zombie comedy film directed by Christopher Landon and written by Landon, Carrie Evans, Emi Mochizuki and Lona Williams. The film stars Tye Sheridan, Logan Miller, Joey Morgan, Sar ...
''. In its opening weekend, it was projected to make $5–7 million from 2,202 theaters,
however only ended up grossing $3.2 million, finishing eighth at the box office. This was the lowest wide release opening of Bullock's career, beating 1996's ''
Two If by Sea
''Two If by Sea'' (also known in the United Kingdom as ''Stolen Hearts'') is a 1996 American romantic comedy film directed by Bill Bennett, and starring Sandra Bullock and Denis Leary. The screenplay, written by Leary and Mike Armstrong, is based ...
'' ($4.7 million).
Critical response
On
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, the film has an approval rating of 35% based on 147 reviews, with an average rating of 5.3/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "''Our Brand Is Crisis'' offers sporadic amusement and benefits from a talented cast, but ultimately lacks enough of a bite to add much of interest to the political satire genre." On
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
, the film has a weighted average score of 53 out of 100, based on 35 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". On
CinemaScore, audiences gave the film an average grade of "C+" on an A+ to F scale.
Eric Kohn from
Indiewire
IndieWire (sometimes stylized as indieWIRE or Indiewire) is a film industry and review website that was established in 1996. The site's focus was predominantly independent film, although its coverage has grown to "to include all aspects of Holl ...
wrote that the movie is all about Bullock's performance, saying "she imbues her part with a ferocious energy that constantly elevates the straightforward material". Peter Debruge from ''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' thought that Jane Bodine, played by Bullock, "is easily one of the best female roles of the last 10 years," while Benjamn Lee from ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' wrote that "Bullock seems blissfully unaware of the film’s faults and delivers a performance that expertly plays on her strengths - her comic timing, wasted in lesser, plane-ready comedies, is on top form and she imbues her neurotic character with more than the thinly sketched quirks provided on the page; she commands a room when needed, perfects scenes of physical comedy and even turns a climax of forced sentiment into something poignant and believable"; he concluded that "while the film is patchy, Bullock's brand is confidently crisis-free".
References
External links
*
*
*
*
Ourbrandiscrisis.orgParody website of film illustrating deadly consequences of election of
Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada
Gonzalo may refer to:
* Gonzalo (name)
* Gonzalo, Dominican Republic, a small town
* Isla Gonzalo, a subantarctic island operated by the Chilean Navy
* Hurricane Gonzalo, 2014
See also
* Gonzalez (disambiguation)
* Gonzales (disambiguation)
* ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Our Brand Is Crisis
2015 films
2010s English-language films
2010s biographical films
American biographical films
2010s political comedy-drama films
American political comedy-drama films
Biographical films about politicians
Biographical films about presidents
Comedy films based on actual events
Dune Entertainment films
Films about elections
Films directed by David Gordon Green
Films produced by George Clooney
Films produced by Grant Heslov
Films set in 2002
Films set in Bolivia
Films shot in New Orleans
Political films based on actual events
Participant (company) films
Smokehouse Pictures films
Warner Bros. films
Works about the International Monetary Fund
Cultural depictions of politicians
Cultural depictions of Bolivian people
2010s American films