Run This Town (2020)

Run This Town is what you would get if Aaron Sorkin wrote a Canadian political drama. Rapid fire intelligent dialogue, sexy smart characters, political intrigue critiquing the modern right. Run This Town is as exfiltrating as The West Wing. But focused on the quieter moments, the way diverse communities interact, the interconnectedness of urban life, and finding a hopefullness in the futility of it all. There is a real Canadianess in Run This Town which is different from American political thrillers.

Run This Town tells the schemes and political background of Rob Ford's last year as mayor of Toronto and looks at the ways political structures and the realities of the business of media tear down our opportunities for good government. Due to some copyright issues it changes some characters and facts but mostly sticks to the story which highlights the way our dysfunctional democratic institutions create situations where figure heads who bring in the mass support can get away with disgusting behavior. 

Writer/director Tollman uses a hyper kinetic filming style, split screen effects, flashy colours lighting, and other very music video feeling techniques to create an electric excitement throughout the film. But he slows it down at moments that need to be highlighted. There is a scene in the middle where Ford has a racist, sexist melt down in front of his staff, harassing them. It is a hard scene to watch in how it shows the powerlessness of those on the payroll of the mayor who try to get the work done and what they go through. There is another moment where Massoud's character is confronted with his own competing interests which is quite tender. Tollman balances his use of spectacle film making with these more powerful moments well.

I do find Tollman's approach is a bit on the nose. He often shoves his characters' issues in our faces. I'm willing to forgive this mostly as I find this works in this specific film and his style overcomes this or compensates for it. Run This Town remains a truly watchable film and it makes its point, even if it is a bit heavy handed in doing so.

I felt the entire cast felt up to the task of giving the film the energy it needs. Mena Massoud (Aladdin) is especially sharp as a Ford apologist on the mayor's payroll who is good at what he does and remains ambitious as he knows exactly what he's doing and the trade offs he's prepared to make.People talk about Damien Lewis' transformation into Ford, and I think he does a good job of finding some subtlety in a role which could have been total caricature, but for me the heart of the film was Massoud, conflicted and complicit, failing yet still the protagonist of the story. Platt feels flat in this, a rather thankless role which is meant to be our hero but fails to generate much sympathy.

But perhaps in those two roles the real Canadianess of this film comes out. Canadians often find themselves in the contradictions of our lives and these two characters personify that, even if they are constructs not based on real individuals. The film ends with a rather bleak message of futility yet with a spark of hope which I alluded to earlier. There is a happy ending in the tragedy which just felt so completely Canadian.

Run This Town
Starring: Ben Platt, Mena Massoud, Mina Dobrev, Scott Speedman, Gil Bellows, Jennifer Ehle, Damien Lewis
Writer/director: Ricky Tollman