Election

Alexander Payne, USA, 1999, 103 minutes

It's like my mom says, "The weak are always trying to sabotage the strong."

With this mantra in mind Tracey Flick lives the life of the high school overachiever; she is intelligent, polite and so unscrupulous that when she starts her unopposed campaign to be student president of Carver High school nothing can stand in her way. Well, almost nothing, except perhaps her politics teacher Mr McAllister who - between bouts of mid life crisis and educational excellence - decides that she needs some competition...

Election is a sharp, satirical comedy focussing on the vindictive and backstabbing nature of high school and the moral corruption and hypocrisy of politics, but manages to do so beneath the eternally beguiling exterior of teen comedy. Reese Witherspoon manages to perfectly capture the sunny, chirpy, annoyingness of Tracey Flick allowing Matthew Broderick to step in and instantly captivate the audience as Jim McAllister, the kind of teacher that every student loves: easygoing, supportive and involved. He decides that a more real democracy is needed and plunges the dull - but saintly - injured high school football captain (Chris Klein) into the race. Soon the characters are so mired in their own problems - Jim's wooing of his neighbour and Tracey's furious envy - that things begin to get nasty.

Almost like an unofficial sequel to Ferris Bueller's Day Off - with Matthew Broderick atoning for his previous sins against education by returning as a teacher - Election manages to capture the comic essence of John Hughes' classic, but with a much more cynical, older stance. In this respect it sits interestingly alongside Sideways which lifts characters from traditional frat-boy comedies like Animal House and shows a bleak view of what would have happened to these people in the real world. Alexander Payne has a genius for lulling the viewer into sympathetically empathising with characters; leaving you even more stung as their flaws become apparent.

A perfect antidote to gross out films like American Pie and Road Trip, Election stands to remind us that teen comedies don't have to be dumb to be funny.

Review by George Williamson
Written for EUFS Programme Autumn 2005

Election starts off like any of the recent crop of high school movies, but quickly sticks two fingers up at the genre. Instead of the normal cute romantic storylines, it adopts an altogether more subversive approach which captures the bitchiness, betrayal and angst of life without ever losing sight of the comedy. In doing so, it reaches far beyond the confines of the schoolyard and explores the politics which can be found anywhere from White House to office photocopier.

Devoted teacher Jim McAllister (Matthew Broderick) is worried that perennial overachiever Tracy Flick (Reese Witherspoon) will win the student presidency election unopposed. Seeking to exert some democracy on the process, he persuades nice but dim football hero Paul Metzler (Chris Klein) to stand against her. This merely makes Tracy even more determined to win and, when Paul's alienated younger sister Tammy (Jessica Campbell) joins the race, leads her to use extreme measures to guarantee success. Meanwhile, Mr. McAllister's life becomes increasingly complicated as he strays from the principles he teaches. Come election day there can be only one winner, and the aftermath might be more than some of the participants expected.

Election is a joyously farcical return to the warped high school world explored in films like Heathers. By casting former teen movie stalwart Matthew Broderick as the put-upon teacher, the film both pays homage and manages to rekindle some faith in the Hollywood comedy blockbuster actually providing more than toilet humour. Also interesting, from a view of political correctness, is that the ‘spoilt' kid is the one from the poor background, whilst the ‘nice' kid already has it all.

A superb performance by Witherspoon complements director Alexander Payne's decision to move from the sparkly schools of California to Nebraska. Apart from the grottier buildings, another of the finds was newcomer Klein who plays nice-jock Paul like a new age Keanu (a role he excels in again in the very different teen movie, American Pie).

Unfortunately, at the box office Election was ultimately hampered by its teen movie tag. Which is a shame, since this film is so much more, pushing the boundaries that bit further and definitely one of the most shocking and yet intelligent comedies of the year.

Review by Neil Chue Hong
Taken from EUFS Programme Spring 2000