The Campaign

'The Campaign' sees director Jay Roach carry on his commitment to making quality comedy films such as 'Meet The Parents', 'Borat' and the Austin Powers series with a satirical sideswipe at American politics. It tells the story of previously unopposed Democratic Congressman Cam Brady (Will Ferrell) who finds an unlikely rival in Republican Marty Huggins (Zach Galifianakis) who has been persuaded to stand by two dodgy businessmen (Dan Aykroyd and John Lithgow) who bear more than a passing resemblance to the rich Duke Brothers in 'Trading Places'. With Ferrell on 'Anchorman' autopilot and Galifianakis playing a sweeter version of his oddball roles, the two successfully joust over the issues affecting the voters which seem to be Jesus, guns and terrorism. This culminates in some excellent set pieces involving snake bites, baby punching and sex tape campaign ads.

US politics provides a rich seam for comedy and this film does hit regular laughs which are aided by guest appearances from real life pundits such as Bill Maher and our very own Piers Morgan. Uggie the dog from ‘The Artist’ also makes an appearance along with fine performances from Brian Cox as Huggins senior and Dylan McDermott as a campaign manager with an overly clinical approach. Unfortunately some contentious issues ripe for satire are left alone in favour of sex jokes and visual comedy, which means the film often leans towards the safe side. Also compared to the ridiculous charade that is the current Presidential campaign this satire is pretty toothless as real life events overtake the relatively tame efforts on show here.

Taken at face value this is a brilliantly executed comedy with many high points and excellent writing. Ferrell and Galifianakas have a hilarious on screen chemistry which is evident in the promotional interviews they have undertaken for this movie and let's hope they appear again together soon. Hollywood can turn out top comedy with its eyes closed and with a knowing air and skill for classic one-liners 'The Campaign' is no different. So if you want something to bridge the gap until the Anchorman sequel then this will surely do the trick.