Dir: Ali Abbasi
Cast: Sebastian Stan, Jeremy Strong, Maria Bakalova, Martin Donovan
Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong excel in this shocking, yet entertaining, origin story for one of the most problematic public figures in modern political history
As a film blogger I try to keep my personal views neutral when it comes to reviewing films that touch on political topics, whether they be historical or contemporary. In the past I have gone into movies with politically sensitive themes with an open mind, purely for entertainment purposes and basing my critiques on the technical crafts on show rather than the potential heavy handed political messaging. I was apprehensive however going into my recent screening of Ali Abbasi‘s political drama “The Apprentice”, given the movie’s relevance due to the upcoming American election in November. Like many people, I have an opinion on Donald Trump, arguably the most hated and controversial public figure on the planet, but like any professional critic I aim to keep my political stand point and theatrical criticisms separate.
Following its premiere at Cannes in May, “The Apprentice” was swiftly picked up for UK distribution by Studio Canal, however, the film underwent a much more gruelling task in finding a domestic distributor in the United States, largely due to concerns regarding its politically sensitive content as well as any possible attempts by Trump’s legal team to block the film’s release. The film was finally acquired by Briarcliff Entertainment in August and was released theatrically in the US on 11th October, with limited marketing due to potential backlash. The political unrest and unpopular opinion in the US resulted in many audiences members leaving secret early screenings, with those in favour of Trump believing the film to be a hatchet-job towards the Presidential candidate, and those who appose the Republican, refusing to be subjected to anything Trump related. These conflicted attitudes towards the former President of the United States has seen the film perform poorly at the box office domestically, but it will be interesting to see how it fairs over the years as Trump’s grasp over global politics begins to slip.
The thankless task of portraying the 45th US President fell to star of the MCU, Sebastian Stan, with the Marvel actor undergoing a diet of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in a bid to gain weight following his years as comic book character Bucky Barnes. Rather than depicting the Donald Trump we all know and loathe today, Abbasi, along with screenwriter Gabriel Sherman, instead focuses on Trump’s early journey as the downtrodden son of his overbearing father. We are introduced to a young Donald in 1973, where he meets contentious lawyer Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong) in a New York private members bar. Trump complains that the federal government are investigating his real-estate mogul father, Fred Trump (Martin Donovan), for discrimination against African-American tenants. Cohn blackmails the lead prosecutor with incriminating photos of him with a cabana boy, leading to the case being settled for very little. Trump gravitates towards Cohn, seeing him as a better mentor than his father and is taught media relations as well as how to present himself. Cohn offers Donald three rules to abide by at all costs: always attack, deny any wrongdoing, and never admit defeat. Trump would later go onto take credit for these rules while working on his biography “The Art of the Deal”.
The young and ambitious Donald plans to take over the derelict midtown Commodore Hotel, but is frequently dismissed by his father and city officials. Cohn blackmails members of a mayoral panel into granting Trump a $160 million tax abatement for the project, outraging local advocates for the poor. Following the build’s success, Trump’s empire continues to grow as he develops the luxurious Trump Tower, as well as multiple Atlantic City casinos, despite Cohn’s protestations. Inevitably, the increasingly power-hungry Trump begins to usurp his mentor, having taken his words of wisdom and fully embodied them. This more naively confident Donald begins to tire from his wife, model and aspiring interior designer Ivana (Maria Bakalova), resulting in years of extra-marital affairs and misogynistic behaviour.
Given the public outcry surrounding “The Apprentice” from both ends of the political spectrum, I found myself pleasantly surprised by the Abbasi’s open-minded approach in conveying a young Donald Trump and his actions on the big screen. Many, like myself, would have expected the Iranian-Danish filmmaker to pull no punches in ridiculing the infamous public figure, giving the majority of audiences what they want – a savage two-hour attack on Trump. It is not a flattering depiction of the Trump by any means, highlighting his sexism, countless illegal practises and dealings, as well as depicting the alleged rape of his own wife, but it refuses to veer into SNL levels of parody and condemnation. Abbasi’s previous notable works, “Holy Spider” (2022) and “Border” (2018) are proof that the filmmaker is not known for his subtlety, but thanks to Kasper Tuxen‘s seedy, expository cinematography and Sherman’s snappy and partially forgiving script, he is reined in to create a very realistic depiction of Trump and a run-down 1970’s New York. What makes Sherman’s script work so well is the attention towards the motives that drive Trump, rather than his questionable actions and even more despisable personally traits. Similarly to Martin Scorsese‘s “The Wolf of Wall Street”, “The Apprentice” is a tale of greed and corruption, with a central character who people seemingly love to hate. Both films unashamedly glorify wealth and power, but they would still work thematically irregardless of the very real “protagonists” at their centre.
The real strength of Abbasi’s film though is the performances, particularly that of Stan and Strong, both of whom arguably deliver career best work here. It has been a stellar month for Stan theatrically, which also saw the release of “A Different Man”, in which he portrays a facially disfigured actor who undergoes plastic surgery to cure himself of his condition. Stan has garnered rave reviews for both performances, seeing him on the bubble for a potential Oscar nomination in the new year. Over the years, many have tried their hand at portraying, or rather impersonating Donald Trump. The businessman turned politician, known for his signature look and verbal mannerisms, has been parodied to death on American television, particularly on “Saturday Night Live”, by the likes of Alec Baldwin and more recently James Austin Johnson. While these comedic impressions offer a cheap laugh, they would be very out of place in Abbasi’s tonally darker film. What Stan manages to achieve is to not impersonate Trump to the point of caricature, but embody him emotionally. Aided by some excellent hair and make-up, Stan seamlessly transitions into a young Trump, subtly capturing his mannerisms without ever over doing it. This nuanced portrayal allows Stan to focus more heavily on actual acting rather than impersonating, and he is on point from beginning to end as we see an initially hopeless Donald, who is still wet behind the years, transform into the public monster we know today. This decade spanning character arc is reciprocated physically as the supposedly attractive playboy Trump of the 1970’s begins to gain weight, lose his hair as well as his looks. This culminates in Donald undergoing multiple plastic surgeries in a bid to preserve his youthfulness, in a scene thematically reminiscent of Mary Shelley‘s “Frankenstein”, in which the monster, Trump, becomes more powerful than the creator, Cohn.
Strong’s slippery portrayal of the equally immoral Cohn builds on his award-winning work on the excellent television series “Succession”, with his character here closer resembling that of his loathsome on screen father, Logan Roy, who was excellently portrayed by Brian Cox. Cohn was a hard-hitting but contradictory figure before his death, who continuously persecuted the gay community despite being a closeted homosexual himself. His wide eyed, almost Eagle-like physicality embodies the symbolic bird of prey of his beloved United States of America, with his aspirations for protecting his once great country taking priority above all else.
I understand why many people would refuse to watch “The Apprentice”, especially with the election being only a matter of days away, an election that somehow could see Donald Trump once again elected the leader of the free world. In spite of what you might expect, Abbasi’s film is definitely worth seeking out, purely for the performances alone.
The Apprentice is now showing in UK Cinemas.
Dan Loves Film 
To soon. I will watch this when he’s dead. As a way of better understanding our collective trauma.
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“too” soon
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Fair enough. Is one people will choose to avoid
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