That was an excellent one.

Good concept, poorly executed.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Based on the true story of Jack Reed (played by Warren Beatty) and Louise Bryant (Diane Keaton), two American socialists and writers. During WW1 they actively campaigned for and wrote about socialist causes. When the news of the Russian Revolution broke this was seen as the chance for socialism to gain a greater foothold and popularity. Reed went to Russia to see what could be learned from the revolution and took the ideas back to the US, forming the Communist Labor Party of America. Things weren't all plain-sailing though, both in the relationship between Reed and Bryant and in politics.Written and directed by Warren Beatty, the movie is really just a medium for Beatty to express his political views. And what misguided views they are! Ultra-left-wing, to the point of glorifying an incredibly reprehensible totalitarian regime.Before we even get to that, we have the background, setting out Reed and Bryant's relationship plus their politics. This is incredibly dull and padded, taking about 90 minutes for something that could have taken 15-30 minutes.The movie does pick up pace towards the end, but, as mentioned, not in a good direction.The ending is quite emotional, though to get to it you have to sit through a 190-or-so minute movie that could have been done in about 120 minutes.Despite the idealistic, misguided plot and extravagant (in terms of running time) direction, can't fault the performances. Beatty puts in a solid performance as Reed and Keaton is great as Bryant. Good supporting cast too: Jack Nicholson (as Eugene O'Neill), Paul Sorvino and Gene Hackman, among others.

The film's major flaw was the script - it had potential but the front end had that '70's' bouquet. Bunch of hippies acting out their immorality out in some isolated beach house on Long Island. The cast was a 'whos who' of Hollywood libtard elites.Having said that it could have been a good film 'maybe; a great one but Beatty got 'romantic' and in place of a real dialogue repeatedly had 'dance scenes' or the focus swung to his squeeze at the time Diane 'Louise Bryant' Keaton.The two great performances were done by Maureen Stapleton playing Emma Goldblum and Jack Nicholson as Eugene O'Neill. Both of them lit up the screen esp. the latter in fact it is one of Nicholson's best and sadly he isn't seen enough in the film.The cliché 'commune' interactions by the Bolsheviks and Reed was expectable but also predictable. This is why the left controls the media - they worship the state and the control the state covets is what they do as well.

A radical American journalist (Warren Beatty) becomes involved with the Communist revolution in Russia and hopes to bring its spirit and idealism to the United States.This film seems to be something like a docudrama, before there really was such a thing as a docudrama. We have actors portraying characters at this critical point in history with Bolsheviks, socialists and all that. But every so often we cut to real people, playing themselves, talking about the events. That is not too different than how things are done on the history programs today.Perhaps not well known anymore, John Reed was a real journalist who really lived through the Russian Revolution. What you see in this film is more or less true. And that makes it all the more interesting, because the role of Americans in Russia at the time is typically ignored or downplayed.

It's 1915 in provincial Portland. Louise Bryant (Diane Keaton) is a liberated married woman who is at odds with her husband. She goes to the Liberal Club to hear Jack Reed (Warren Beatty) who claims the war is for profits. She is drawn immediately to him and interviews him. She follows him to NYC but she struggles in Jack's shadow. She has an affair with Eugene O'Neill (Jack Nicholson) but marries Jack anyways. Jack and his colleagues rally against the declaration of war. The marriage is not going smoothly and Bryant goes to France to be a war correspondent. Despite his medical problems, Reed goes over to Europe and convinces her to join him in Russia. They become writing partners and witness the Bolshevik Revolution in October 1917. The second half has Reed struggle to bring Revolution to America but faces infighting with Louis Fraina (Paul Sorvino). He struggles even more in Russia as he fights with Bolshevik revolutionary Grigory Zinoviev with his declining health.The movie is very long although I understand why it had to be so long. There is an epic both the small scale personal romance and in the geopolitical world. The acting is superb. Keaton and Beatty really pushes hard. I'm less certain about the inserts of the real people. Most of the people are not well known. It gives it flavor but it also disrupts the flow. The movie needs faster pacing.