Sebastian Stan gives a compelling and accurate performance of Trump, with uncanny mannerisms and a gradual transformation into the man we love to hate. His performance lures you in with the pretence of a naïve and pathetic young man, to throw any empathy it developed right back in your face when he revealed his true colours. Stan’s Trump is true to life - disgusting, off-putting and sleazy being three sugar-coated descriptors of the film’s protagonist.
Manipulative and ruthless, Roy Cohn manages to steal the show, and Jeremy Strong gives a stand-out performance. Roy Cohn nurtures young Donald Trump into his cruel adult persona in a corrupted father and son relationship, where eventually Trump takes a large chomp out of the hand that feeds. Strong’s portrayal of an evil lawyer who eventually suffers from HIV/AIDS is compelling, as the audience leaves the theatre feeling sympathy for a man who has done nothing but ATTACK, ATTACK, ATTACK for the past two hours.
Absolute power corrupts absolutely- something audiences can learn from the life story of Donald J Trump
The film takes a confusing and interesting dive into Trump’s family life, presumably to humanise and contextualise the actions of a political villain. Whereas the film is intriguing, it lacks a strong political point. Is its purpose to make us empathise with such an awful human? Or is it to lead us into a closer relationship with him so that we are betrayed when he transforms into his worst self?
The production and release of The Apprentice is convenient, with the US presidential election only weeks away - was the purpose of this film propaganda? Will the empathy it strikes lead to an election victory, and if so, should a Kamala biopic have been produced?
With its incredibly intimate handheld cinematography and some incredible acting, The Apprentice is a film that grips and shocks an audience. It provides a revealing insight into the life of ‘sadistic, inhumane conservatives’ and their illicit dealings in the name of power. It was an invite into the psyches of the self-centred, capitalistic, indecent men who run America - from the 1980s to 2024. These men, who consider themselves genetically prone to ‘killer instincts’ in business, are platformed and celebrated by audiences who believe that America’s founding ethos is ‘You have to be willing to do anything to anyone.’ Absolute power corrupts absolutely- something audiences can learn from the life story of Donald J Trump.
