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VICE

Biopic. With Christian Bale, Amy Adams and Steve Carell. Director: Adam McKay. 16DLPV. In this scalpel-sharp, blackly comic political satire – which has been nominated for eight Oscars – McKay dissects US politics using the same unconventional approach he applied to the 2008 financial crash in The Big Short (2015).

Although the focus is on US vice-president Dick Cheney (Oscar nominee Bale) and his rise to power, McKay uses the opportunity to try to explain how America’s politics and government got to the point where the right and the left are more divided than ever.

Instead of creating a straightforward biopic, McKay uses every stylistic trick in the book, and lots of acerbic humour, to hold your attention, making the niche subject accessible to viewers who have only a passing interest in it. The film jumps forward and backward in time, uses a narrator with a surprising connection to the subject as well as quick cuts, montages and characters talking directly to the camera. One brilliant scene even has Cheney and his wife, Lynne (Oscar nominee Adams), pondering their next move in the style of Shakespearian villains Macbeth and his wife.

These techniques make it plain this is a subjective look at what happened, a refreshing change from many sure to tug at your heartstrings. It’s based on the true story of French businessman Philippe Pozzo di Borgo, who became a diabetic quadriplegic in 1993, and his carer, Abdel Sellou.

The plot has a rather clichéd twist, but Cranston, Hart and Kidman (who stars as Phillip’s stuck-up executive, Yvonne) play their characters with such easy persuasion that you’re still captivated.

The movie lacks the depth a drama requires but also the comedic punchlines to have you chuckling uproariously. Still, it’s a pleasant watch. If anything, The Upside will open your eyes to the difficulty people with disabilities face every day – even if their bank account is bursting at the seams. – KIM ABRAHAMS biopics that portray events as the absolute truth. The political manoeuvring is treated as a grand farce, which makes the moments showing the brutal consequences of Cheney’s foreign policy all the more shocking.

As usual Bale gives an exceptional performance, completely disappearing into the quiet but cunning Cheney, and never descending into caricature. Adams and Carell are also brilliant, while Tyler Perry is surprisingly good as Colin Powell. Only Oscar nominee Sam Rockwell overdoes it a bit as George W Bush.

The deadpan humour, slow pace and narrow focus probably have limited appeal for most viewers and McKay seems unsure how to end Vice, with the last 30 minutes meandering to the brink of bad taste, but those looking for an intelligent, thought-provoking film should give this try.