'Vice' Movie Review: What Critics Are Saying About This Christian Bale Flick

The reviews are in for the Dick Cheney biopic “Vice.” The film has not met the expectations of the critics, but lead cast member Christian Bale, who plays Cheney, has nailed the part. Readers who plan to watch this flick during Christmas may do so just to see Bale’s huge transformation and his solid performance.

Director Adam McKay seems to be making a name for himself for shedding light on the problems the U.S. is facing today at the institutional level. Readers may remember McKay’s film “The Big Short,” which focused on Wall Street during the 2008 recession.

“Vice” follows the story of Cheney, a man who joins politics after his wife Lynne (Amy Adams) urges him to. He joins as an intern to Donald Rumsfeld (Steve Carell) and quickly rises through the ranks, IGN reported. Cheney’s health later forces him to retire from politics and take up a job in the private sector. His story appears to end there, but then an unexpected phone call starts a new political journey.

Texas Governor George W. Bush (Sam Rockwell) is running for president of the U.S., and he wants Cheney to be his running mate. The position of vice president in itself isn’t appealing to Cheney, so he strikes a deal to take key responsibilities like military, energy department and foreign policy.

According to a review by Variety, “Vice” is “brashly entertaining,” but in the end it fails to be “rich and deep,” which is expected of a biopic of Cheney. Bale, on the other hand, has been praised for delivering a perfect performance. The actor transformed himself physically through extensive prosthetics, and he was also able to capture the passive-aggressive style of Cheney.

The film mostly sticks to the facts, although there are some elements of fantasy that have been added to give a better insight into the mind of Cheney. The film also lets the audience see the dark things Cheney does, but the tone itself isn’t dark. Some of the serious issues the film explores are the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attack and the use of “enhanced interrogation techniques.”

There is a parallel between the story in “Vice” and Shakespeare’s drama “Macbeth.” Rolling Stone noted that there are moments when Bale’s Cheney and the character’s wife appear like Lord and Lady Macbeth.

“Vice” will be released on Dec. 25 in theaters across the U.S. Some of the other major characters in the film are Paul Wolfowitz (Eddie Marsan) and Colin Powell (Tyler Perry).