The Apprentice Movie Review

You may know, at least you do now, that Trump tried to stop this movie from getting released. It is not a pro-Trump film, and he doesn’t want voters hearing what it has to say.

​

It starts with a Nixon speech. “I’ve made mistakes, but in all my years of public life, I have never profited from public service. I’ve earned every cent. Then we hear the famous line, “I’m not a crook.” Ex-president trump was indited, which his father, Fred (Marin Donovan) makes it a point to tell him how bad a man is if he has been indited and is accused of not paying his workers. Is he what Nixon was being accused of?

You may not like the subject of “The Apprentice” …maybe you love him. Either way, see this. Whatever you feel about Donald J. Trump, he’s not a reason to miss the work done here. This movie is brilliantly researched, well-written, and superbly directed. What I’m trying to tell you is that it’s excellent. Some biographies miss the point and don’t focus on the little things never spoken about, exactly what the audience wants to see. You’ll get from the movie what you’re not getting from podcasts, articles, or books.

“The Apprentice” leaves nothing out. It’s as if director Ali Abbasi has been following Trump, who’s played terrifically by Sebastian Stan in the recent film “A Different Man,” for decades. The performances are so good I had to check if Trump wasn’t actually playing himself! Stan has the smug look Trump usually has and has similar features. As far as playing Roy Cohn is concerned, I thought the man had returned! That’s how tremendous Jeremy Strong, (Kendall Roy from “Succession”) was in the role. I applaud the casting of this film.

Roy Cohn is made out to be the good guy here, which he was not. He gets Donald and Fred to sue the Department of Justice to help them out of a bind. He becomes Donald’s lawyer. He needs a lifeline, and Cohn is more than capable of tossing him some rope. Unfortunately, he created the monster that Trump has become. He’s not unlike those involved in McCarthyism, another thing Cohn helped orchestrate.

Cohn makes sure that Trump hears him when he says that he expects to get help back when it’s needed. “If you look like a million dollars, I look like a million dollars.” It’s a tit-for-tat relationship. Early, Trump is the only man on the receiving end of the deal. Roger Stone (Mark Rendall) enters the picture, coming out of a pool that belongs to Cohn. He’s introduced as someone who “specializes in dirty tricks.” He has no comment. Most likely already warned about who Trump is deep inside, he sees Trump as someone to manipulate for future use. He knows Trump’s eyes are hungry and he wants his ego stroked, so Stone tells him what he wants to hear, saying he would like to see Trump as president one day. He impressed Trump by explaining that he came up with “Let’s Make America Great… Again” for Reagan’s campaign. Sound familiar?

While watching this, I concluded that who you hear isn’t Donald Trump. He became Cohn long ago. When Cohn passed away, Trump took for himself Cohn’s three rules to be a winner. They are, one, attack, attack, attack! Two, admit nothing and deny everything. No matter what is said, never admit defeat. And three, even when beaten, claim victory. He sure does seem to have followed the rules. Falsehoods can be staring him in the face, but he’ll declare their truthfulness. He hasn’t the ability to be ashamed or humiliated about anything so it’s easy to tell a lie. Then Trump’s book “The Art of the Deal,” written by Trump and journalist Tony Schwartz, is published. He’s moving up in the world, leaving his father behind him.

It isn’t long before he meets Ivana, a relationship with a short shelf life. Once a man with a dream, the movie gets heavy into his building Trump Tower, which you may not think would be appealing but was quite noteworthy and intriguing. With all of this, you better understand who Donald is, good and bad. This is a fascinating look into Trump and Roy Cohn, an influential lawyer already.

It’s obvious he created Trump to benefit himself, continuing to do this for others along the way. The release of “The Apprentice” is perfectly timed, coming out right before the election.