Donald Trump has become one of the most well-known figures of the past 50 years, for worse (no better needed to add) he has managed to ingrain himself in the public eye with his flashy appearances and pompous persona, he has climbed his way to the top from a real estate salesman to the President of the United States. It’s insane to put in perspective how he managed to pull it off but it’s due to his charisma and drive which seems unstoppable. Touted as the ‘villain origin story’ of Donald Trump, when the film was announced and in production, various people including myself wondered about the complicated ethics about portraying someone so detrimental to the current state of politics and that for the film to succeed, it would consist of a tricky balancing act in this portrayal of the notorious businessman.
Ali Abassi constructs a world so compelling and interesting to the lore and legacy of Donald Trump, which outright scorns the figure and his principles but looks sympathetically at his past and how his actions, particularly in regard to his relationship with Roy Cohn leads to his ethical downfall. The Apprentice is a fascinating dissection of a power, greed and corruption through the story of Donald Trump, where the different narrative beats almost play as satirical due to the wild and ludicrous behaviour of the notorious figure, where his unchecked power by the end shows the monster he has become.
The film opens with Donald Trump walking around a decadent and grisly New York City to meet for a drink with a woman in an exclusive and elite Manhattan bar, where we later find out has little interest in him and vice versa. He riddles off the various names of the people in the bar, admiring the power and money they have obtained looking in wonder and desire for this. A hypnotising shot of Roy Cohn catching eyes with Donald Trump signifies an uncertainty and enticing danger within himself, Trump in awe of his finesse with people circulating him and showing him respect, he is eventually summoned to his table.
Cohn’s introduction and attitude is a prime example to how Trump got his flair and persona, a mentor/mentee relationship is developed between the two, where Cohn takes Trump under his wing and shows him all he needs to achieve to get to the top and be the person we now know today as Donald Trump. From the petty nicknames, to the braggadocios finger-wagging to his three rules of winning, Roy Cohn instills the foul politics and corrupt morals onto an impressionable Donald Trump.
A complex takedown of the American Dream and the ideals put forth - The Apprentice viciously dissects the many steps Donald Trump takes to get to the top and the people close to him that he steps on and destroys to get what he wants. The notion of the American Dream has populated many notable films of the past century, looking at the struggle and drive many people strive towards to achieve the success to ‘make it’ in America. This perception that it its available to all those who seek is false as it doesn’t consider the external factors which only limit it to a certain few – Donald Trump being one of them – where his unbridled ambition and drive leads him to obtaining everything he desires and becomes one of the men he was fawning over in the film’s opening scene.
The performances of the principle cast were outstanding and impressive in their transformative abilities of these infamous figures. Sebastian Stan’s performance as Donald Trump touts the balancing act of portraying the negative side of the businessman displaying his vanity and greed, yet keeps it very grounded. It never veers into the comical or clichéd and even shows a humanistic side of the character which demonstrates how even people with no sympathy or sense of right and wrong, can hold human emotions. Jeremy Strong as Roy Cohn depicts this important figure through such a dramatic flair and detailed focus, you can tell the actor was so insistent on giving an accurate performance to the real-life counterpart. Showing the traits of corruption and untrustworthiness that have come parcel to the persona of Trump, Strong manages to portray this character with an acerbic fury. With the little screen time that she has, Maria Bakalova as Ivana Trump is great as the famed wife of the real estate tycoon and nails the initial hesitation to Donald to her eventual admiration of his will to achieve and fear of his powerful wrath. Determined and strong in her own right, there are various emotional and impactful scenes which Bakalova owns, where we see her drive and determination to be a successful businesswoman rival Donald which leads to his dismay and disgust for her.
BFI LFF # 6
The film opens with Donald Trump walking around a decadent and grisly New York City to meet for a drink with a woman in an exclusive and elite Manhattan bar, where we later find out has little interest in him and vice versa. He riddles off the various names of the people in the bar, admiring the power and money they have obtained looking in wonder and desire for this. A hypnotising shot of Roy Cohn catching eyes with Donald Trump signifies an uncertainty and enticing danger within himself, Trump in awe of his finesse with people circulating him and showing him respect, he is eventually summoned to his table.
Cohn’s introduction and attitude is a prime example to how Trump got his flair and persona, a mentor/mentee relationship is developed between the two, where Cohn takes Trump under his wing and shows him all he needs to achieve to get to the top and be the person we now know today as Donald Trump. From the petty nicknames, to the braggadocios finger-wagging to his three rules of winning, Roy Cohn instills the foul politics and corrupt morals onto an impressionable Donald Trump.
A complex takedown of the American Dream and the ideals put forth - The Apprentice viciously dissects the many steps Donald Trump takes to get to the top and the people close to him that he steps on and destroys to get what he wants. The notion of the American Dream has populated many notable films of the past century, looking at the struggle and drive many people strive towards to achieve the success to ‘make it’ in America. This perception that it its available to all those who seek is false as it doesn’t consider the external factors which only limit it to a certain few – Donald Trump being one of them – where his unbridled ambition and drive leads him to obtaining everything he desires and becomes one of the men he was fawning over in the film’s opening scene.
The performances of the principle cast were outstanding and impressive in their transformative abilities of these infamous figures. Sebastian Stan’s performance as Donald Trump touts the balancing act of portraying the negative side of the businessman displaying his vanity and greed, yet keeps it very grounded. It never veers into the comical or clichéd and even shows a humanistic side of the character which demonstrates how even people with no sympathy or sense of right and wrong, can hold human emotions. Jeremy Strong as Roy Cohn depicts this important figure through such a dramatic flair and detailed focus, you can tell the actor was so insistent on giving an accurate performance to the real-life counterpart. Showing the traits of corruption and untrustworthiness that have come parcel to the persona of Trump, Strong manages to portray this character with an acerbic fury. With the little screen time that she has, Maria Bakalova as Ivana Trump is great as the famed wife of the real estate tycoon and nails the initial hesitation to Donald to her eventual admiration of his will to achieve and fear of his powerful wrath. Determined and strong in her own right, there are various emotional and impactful scenes which Bakalova owns, where we see her drive and determination to be a successful businesswoman rival Donald which leads to his dismay and disgust for her.
BFI LFF # 6
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