Game Change

This ambitious HBO production offers a behind-the-scenes look at the election campaign of John McCain, the 2008 Republican candidate for president. Trailing Barack Obama, McCain and his election staff decide to pin their hopes on the relatively unknown governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin. Although at first the self-confident and capable individual gives the campaign a needed lift, she gradually begins to drown in her own absurd pronouncements, which are soon being mocked around the world. The movie shows the inner workings of a political campaign and confirms certain views of the outlandish and controversial Sarah Palin. The then manager of the McCain election campaign has stated that Game Change represents a truthful depiction of the story as it played out at the time. The director’s emphasis on faithfully portraying the topic can be seen as well in the outstanding rendering of the Alaskan governor, performed on-screen to a T by the highly talented Julianne Moore. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)