Review: Miss Sloane (2016)

In Washington D.C. political lobbyist Elizabeth Sloane is being investigated by a Senate committee, while we see the events leading to this, as she takes on the gun lobby over a new bill...

Sometimes a performance can dominate a film so much, the rest of the film gets overshadowed. Miss Sloane comes close to that. Simply put, Jessica Chastain's performance as Sloane is so good, it blows everything else in the film out of sight. Even if this was a bad film (which it isn't) it would still be worth watching for Chastain's performance. She's always been a good actor, but here she is sensational. The character, confident, intelligent, often the smartest person in the room, needed someone who could channel that without being oveconfident, keeping the audience on her side, to a degree, and Chastain manages that. It's one of the best performances of the year so far.

That's not to say that the others in the cast aren't good either. Mark Strong, Sam Waterston, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, John Lithgow, Alison Pill and Michael Stuhlbarg are all excellent. The director, John Madden, often just needs to set his camera up and let his actors, well, act and they all do great work. The script from Jonathan Perera helps, giving them all good material to work with.

While there will no doubt be controversy over the subject matter, gun rights in America, but really that is more a backstory, albeit an important one, for what the film is really about, which is how lobbying works in America and how Miss Sloane will do anything to win, even reveal personal but devastating information about one of her team, that leads to potential danger.There is also how her former employers, now working for the gun lobby will deploy similar tactics to win themselves, all of which comes to ahead at the committee hearings.

There is little here that doesn't work really. The only issue, even if you can call it that, is that never really see Sloane's personal side. We see that she has appointments with a male escort, but aside from that, we never see what truly drives her, only her desire to win. The committee resolution does feel a little contrived, if you think it through, although it does play into Miss Sloane's desire to win. These are minor flaws in an otherwise damn good film.

Despite not being full of guns and action, it is a more gripping, absorbing film than many of that kind. It's a thriller in its own right and one of the best to come along for sometime.

If you get the chance, go see it, even if it's just for Jessica Chastain's performance. It's worth it.

Highly recommended.

Rating - 4/5