Jess Chastain delivers a powerhouse performance in this film and truly deserves the highest accolades, ie a little gold statue. The dialogue is on a very high level if a little wordy (think Aaron Sorkin) and the subject matter is extremely topical. An unusually intelligent film aimed at adults that is definitely worth your time. Chastain also rocks some very impressive outfits!
8
"largely unsympathetic [...] most sympathetic"
You can tell it's a film with female leads because of the tender-hearted vocabulary of critics' reviews.
10
The film is over directed, but Chastain’s dialogue crackles with resolute conviction. At over 2 hrs, it only scratches the surface in shedding light on the complex issue of gun control. While Elizabeth’s fervency for the “right” side might have rung true, scenes like the citizen stopping a crime felt contrived. I think she could just as easily have been any lobbyist representing any organization. While there were a few quick scenes of her convincing various people to her side, I would have appreciated a little more detail on opinion changing, how it’s done. Isn’t that the crux of what a lobbyist does?
The brief prison scene at the end seems tacked on which is unfortunate because Elizabeth’s duplicity is really the heart of the film. That scene should have opened the movie with her character’s inner workings fleshed out better than just a few pill popping moments.
My personal view on gun control is to hold a Town Hall meeting. One group of gun owners while the other group would be people who’ve suffered gunshot wounds. Ne’er the twain shall meet they say, but these two should.
The brief prison scene at the end seems tacked on which is unfortunate because Elizabeth’s duplicity is really the heart of the film. That scene should have opened the movie with her character’s inner workings fleshed out better than just a few pill popping moments.
My personal view on gun control is to hold a Town Hall meeting. One group of gun owners while the other group would be people who’ve suffered gunshot wounds. Ne’er the twain shall meet they say, but these two should.
2
I think the review is a bit harsh. Chastain shines in her portrayal of a hard-edged and calculating political lobbyist. Ultimately the film is an intense character study of Miss Sloane, who is so consumed by their career that she not only ruthlessly manipulates others to 'win', but sacrifices her own ethics and identity in the process. The end of the film gives clues but doesn't fully address if Sloane has started to discover true self again. Good restraint by the filmmakers to resist the temptation to fully resolve the questions we still have about Sloane. The storyline is suspenseful and well written, if a bit long. This film gives the viewer pause to examine their own life - am I too obsessed with my 'job'? Am I spending so much time on my career that I can't separate who I really am from what I do to pay my bills? Am I motivated to dishonest actions due to my dedication to win on the job at all costs? If the movie is a cautionary tale about corporate/political power going too far, it is a success.
17
If the central character was a man, would they have been described as "chilly"? Jessica Chastain was a delight to watch as always. Excellent drama all around.
17
Holden ends his review: "Partly because 'Miss Sloane' is more a character study than a coherent political drama, it fumbles the issue it purports to address, and it eventually runs aground in a preposterous ending. In light of the recent presidential election, it all feels like small potatoes."
Wow, those are some belittling words for what I think is one of Chastain's best performances. I was much more impressed with her in this film, than other more ostensibly "artistic" or highly praised fair, in which she has engaged. Her performance as the enigmatic and fierce Miss Sloan, whose motivations are difficult to fathom, was extremely compelling to me.
Holden really seems to miss the point of the movie. He simultaneously acknowledges that it's not a traditional political thriller and then treats it like a failed traditional political thriller. Is is the character study that matters. Indeed, it is something of a female revenge fantasy on what remains the good old boys club of white male Washington. Here you have a women who is smarter and more daring than everyone around her, willing to sacrifice herself to bring down at least a few of the men who condescend to her at every turn.
I don't know how that could not be more relevant "in light of the recent election," as Holden concludes. It's hardly "small potatoes" at all, when in our recent election we saw the triumph of misogyny over one of the most qualified people to ever run for president, who happened to be a woman.
Wow, those are some belittling words for what I think is one of Chastain's best performances. I was much more impressed with her in this film, than other more ostensibly "artistic" or highly praised fair, in which she has engaged. Her performance as the enigmatic and fierce Miss Sloan, whose motivations are difficult to fathom, was extremely compelling to me.
Holden really seems to miss the point of the movie. He simultaneously acknowledges that it's not a traditional political thriller and then treats it like a failed traditional political thriller. Is is the character study that matters. Indeed, it is something of a female revenge fantasy on what remains the good old boys club of white male Washington. Here you have a women who is smarter and more daring than everyone around her, willing to sacrifice herself to bring down at least a few of the men who condescend to her at every turn.
I don't know how that could not be more relevant "in light of the recent election," as Holden concludes. It's hardly "small potatoes" at all, when in our recent election we saw the triumph of misogyny over one of the most qualified people to ever run for president, who happened to be a woman.
34
We saw this film last night and really enjoyed it for its emotional and dramatic punches. Quite an old-fashioned narrative arc, finishing with a classic denouement. It reminded me that there's a reason for movie making formulae. Miss Sloane is someone that every woman on earth with a corporate-type job can relate to. No question. Schmidt was a disappointment, I don't know the actor but he did nothing with the role. I thought that the inclusion of the prostitute sub-plot was borderline extraneous but I wish his body had been interesting and the sex had been better, it was the usual strange American movie sex. But I guess the important thing about the movie is that it was a political fairy tale, and that was very attractive to me. People living outside America cannot understand why party discipline (ie, compulsory voting along party lines) doesn't apply to politicians. If it did, the gun situation could be improved a lot. (assuming Democrats had a bit of spine).
7
Schmidt was a set of physical traits: buzz cut=manly, big eyes and nose=ethnic good guy, gravelly monotone=serious. As for the "strange American movie sex," Elizabeth's character is about as mythically American as can be, so why would she want sex any other way? Ford, the escort (get it?), even speaks with the fast drawl of a southern veteran, the kind of guy Miss Sloane would have met a lot of in her days in bed with the conservatives.
4
Sounds like another political polemic disguised as a movie. Self important people chasing made up problems. OTOH, that's exactly the K St I knew.
7
Hmmmmmm! What's going on here. Amy Adams in "Arrival" and Jessica Chastain in "Miss Sloane", playing two strong female characters that dominate the two movies. Do I detect a trend???
10
No shoot em ups, no car chases, no high school kids in lead roles I think I'll see this one.
28
Reviews are just plot summaries nowadays. There used to be an art to writing a good movie review. Apparently it's a lost art.
29