Our Brand is Crisis - D

Rated R, 108 minutes

Sandra Bullock

Boy, it sure does pain me to write this review, as much as I love Sandra Bullock and watching her every move, her new political satire comedy, "Our Brand is Crisis," stinks. This misfire, an unfortunate and unfunny look at using American-style political tactics in a South American election, is one of Bullock's most annoying film vehicle since her Razzie-award winning turn in "All About Steve." In 2002, Bolivian politician Pedro Gallo (a fictionalized version of Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada) hires American James Carville's political consulting firm, Greenberg Carville Shrum, to help him win the 2002 Bolivian presidential election. GCS brings in Jane Bodine (Sandra Bullock) to manage the campaign in Bolivia. Battling her arch nemesis, the opposition's political consultant Pat Candy (Billy Bob Thornton), Bodine successfully uses American political campaign strategies to lead Gallo to victory against Victor Rivera (a fictionalized version of socialist candidate Evo Morales).  Directed by David Gordon Green ("Pineapple Express") and written by Peter Straughan ("Frank") and produced by George Clooney and Grant Heslov, the grating, predictable "Our Brand is Crisis" is based on the 2005 acclaimed documentary of the same from Rachel Boynton, with this film a fictionalized account of the 2002 Bolivian election. It's mostly a bore, with the always charming Bullock walking around looking slightly peeved and munching on snacks throughout the film as she strategizes how to steal votes from her rival, a slick and hammy Thornton in James Carville mode. And no surprise, they start getting votes when they start hitting below the belt and campaigning negatively, digging up dirt about dirty deals and affairs that prove that politicians can be dirty in any country, not just the U.S. Sure, I enjoyed Bullock, and she proves she can handle a role meant for a man, though the script, direction and pacing are all off, veering wildly in different directions, especially in the second act. There are only a handful of truly funny moments, including one for a llama who meets an unfortunate fate, but "Our Brand is Crisis," in spite of a game Bullock, is an unsatisfying comedy that doesn't really work. As much as I hate to say it, skip it for something much better.