just watch it!

It's a mild crowd pleaser for people who are exhausted by blockbusters.

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

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Henry Fonda is the honest aspiring presidential candidate. Clifford Robinson is the social climber. But with the way the characters are written, we're given just about enough realistic nuance to make this more interesting than it would seem classically drawn on paper.It's a good film in that you may not be a natural fan of this sort of film, and yet, it isn't a boring old political film. Yes it's dialog-based, politically/morally centered, but it's well constructed, and the characters are really well written enough that the film as it progresses keeps captivating its audience.The whole effort culminates into the final scene. An interesting outcome. Good stuff. 7.5/10.

"The Best Man" proceeds at a Presidential nominating convention where the party members collaborates together in selecting a hopeful candidate who will rule the country. This procedure was executed way before primaries came into prominence. One of the potential candidates include Secretary of State William Russell (Henry Fonda) whose marriage with his British wife Alice (Margaret Leighton) has fizzled out for quite some time because of his philandering ways over the years. But due to make himself look good so that he might win, she agrees to act like they're act like they're the match made in heaven. President Art Hockstader (Lee Tracy) visits William and Alice on their estate to to talk about what? It's quite obvious that they discuss religion and politics and other generic stuff in between. The rival candidate to Secretary Russell is Senator Joe Cantwell (Cliff Robertson) who promotes himself on television. He makes hypocritical promises by lowering taxes and spending more on the military (can't we stop fighting once and for all?) Will Russell or Cantwell emerge victorious in-spite if they have hidden agendas or hidden secrets that might potentially damage their reputation or their hopes of winning the Presidency? President Hockstader discusses a little about both candidates by successfully staying as unbiased as he could. But Hockstader says something quite memorable about how power to run a country should be handled by use over contemplation. In a secluded basement room, Russell and Cantwell engage in a secret confrontation. Russell comes up by discussing the court-martial testimony. Meanwhile Cantwell digs some dirt of his own to go over the medical report Russell can't follow up on. By leaking old scandals, Cantwell assumes that his win will be a cakewalk.Granted although Lee Tracy was nominated for best supporting actor for his performance,"The Best Man" is still to this day an obscure political thriller. It seemed to take itself way too seriously without any kind of humour plus it may be too wordy for those with short attention spans. But the humanity delivers since both presidential candidates have skeletons hidden in their closets. The election here is very similar to the election of 1920 in which for the first time a president was elected in who came from the Senate, Warren Harding. He won the elections after the other front-runners couldn't come up with compromises. Like when Obama won in 2008, America wanted a change, so Harding got sworn in. Even though Harding id hardly the greatest President ever (Franklin Roosevelt takes that honour), he was a much better human than the media referred to him as (a philanderer and a drunk). Most of the Presidents have all faced dented reputations like that. Harding was surprisingly the only President of our time that was never impeached.For those who are into politics an history might compare the characters to real actual nominees in the history of voting day. William Russell looks like he could pass off as Illinois Governor Adlai Stevenson, Joe Cantwell is a cross between Senator Eugene McCarthy and Richard Nixon and a slight possibility that John Merwin could be a bit like Nelson Rockefeller. I'm just grateful that these chain of events seen here never happened before in real life. Who would put up with that?

Although dated because Gore Vidal placed too much emphasis on the importance of a convention, THE BEST MAN is one of those movies that should be shown the week just before a Presidential primary, convention, debate, or election is held. It is an important statement on what the public really deserves from its leaders, and also what the public frequently ends up getting.The date of the events would be roughly 1968 or possibly 1972, as Joe Cantwell (Clift Robertson's character) served in World War II. The World War II Presidents lasted from General Eisenhower to George H. W. Bush, but the youth of Cantwell limits his having a run after 1972. Cantwell (as was pointed out in another review) is based on Joe McCarthy, although the candidates seem to be Democrats, not Republicans. To be fair he is an amalgam of several figures: Huey Long (with Gene Raymond as a brother Earl - although Earl is made the older brother), and Estes Kefauver, the Tennessee Democratic Senator who fought the Mafia and ended up Stevenson's rival in 1956, and then his Vice Presidential running-mate. Cantwell has made a hard-hitting reputation against communists and mobsters. But he does not care what methods he uses to achieve his goals. At one point one sees him strong-arming delegates through blackmail.As was pointed out his rival, William Russell, is based on two time candidate and loser Adlai Stevenson. Russell actually has an even earlier lineage. His name is the same as Lord William Russell, a 17th Century Whig "liberal" nobleman, and political writer, who was executed for treason in a questionable trial in 1683 in what was called "the Rye House Plot" (supposedly against the life of King Charles II and his brother the Duke of York). Gore Vidal obviously chose the name to suggest a hopelessness in the man's ambitions from the start.Russell also turns out to have had a nervous breakdown of a quasi-violent nature that was covered up by the then President Art Hochstedter (Lee Tracy). This is based on the tragedy (in the Truman Administration) of our first Secretary of Defence, the brilliant James Forresthal, who killed killed himself (threw himself out of a window) from a hospital he was being treated at in 1949. Russell (in Vidal's fiction) was Hochstedter's Secretary of State at the time of his breakdown.Cantwell has massive appeal to the group that Nixon would label "the silent majority". He is one of them, and he knows that they think the way he does. To achieve what they want they will do anything. He has a contempt for effete, liberals like Russell. Russell, who has written a book on his views of the world (similar to Democrat - turned Republican - Wendell Wilkie), loathes Cantwell and his strong arm methods. Russell is married (his wife is played by Margaret Leighton). She resents his womanizing, but like Eleanor Roosevelt admires the man - and will support him if he will refrain from humiliating her in the White House. Cantwell is a family man with children (his wife is played by Edie Adams). He does compartmentalize home-life and political being, but Adams also understands this.Cantwell is ready to spring the report his brother acquired of the nervous breakdown of Russell. But Russell's assistant (Kevin McCarthy) has found evidence of a nasty rumor about Cantwell in the army. A fellow soldier stationed with Cantwell (Shelley Berman) is ready to expose that Cantwell had a homosexual episode while in the service.Both candidates hope to get ex-President Hochstedter's blessing for the nomination. But though he likes Russell, Hochstedter doubts Russell's fighting ability and decisiveness. Hochstedter hates Cantwell (who openly despises him as well), but he knows Cantwell can fight. But he is aware that Cantwell (to win his point) can overkill ridiculously. He also is aware that for himself time may be running out.Other figures are on the sidelines: A southern governor who wants to put a stop to this nonsense about integration (played by blacklist hero John Henry Faulk), an outspoken "Pearl Mesta" type of Washington hostess, giving social tips to the potential first ladies (Ann Southern). And other favorite son candidates, including Richard Arlen.Gore Vidal's family has been involved in American politics for many decades, his grandfather being Senator Thomas Gore of Oklahoma. Distantly he is related to our former Vice Presient Al Gore. So he has made his fable of politics very rich and thought provoking. Who indeed should our political fates be in the hands of? His conclusion is as clever as his viewpoints are wise.

An interesting political drama with satirical humor and a screenplay by Gore Vidal. Vidal successfully adapted the screenplay for the film from his own play. The play Vidal was nominated for six Tony Awards and won two of them for Best Play and Best Actor for Melvyn Douglas in the role of William Russell that would be played by Henry Fonda in the film. the only actor from the original Broadway play that reprises his role for the film was Lee Tracy who was nominated for both a Tony Award and an Academy Award for his interpretation of the role of former president Art Hockstader. At the time of the original staging of the play on Broadway in 1960, Vidal himself was testing the political waters with his own ambition of a political career in his unsuccessful run for U.S. Congress. In the film, former governor and former secretary of state William Russell (Henry Fonda) is the front runner by a slight edge in delegates over senator Joe Cantwell (Cliff Robertson) at a nameless major political party's presidential convention being held in Los Angeles. (in the play the site was Philadelphia) Russell is a man of steadfast determination and principal when it comes to leading the country but has a reputation as a womanizer and has some past mental health issues that his main rival Cantwell will use if he can. Cantwell is a slick politician who will say whatever it takes to get the nomination but Russell has a card of his own on Cantwell's past history and his involvement in a military sex scandal. Former president Art Hocker (Lee Tracy) is the ailing elder statesman whose support is coveted by both Russell and Cantwell and the the other three minor candidates who hold convention delegates, governor T.T. Claypoole (John Henry Faulk), senator Oscar Anderson (Richard Arlen) and governor John Merwin (William R. Ebersol). The three minor candidates are vying for the vice presidency on the ticket with their delegate swing support and the big question is who will win the delegate count, Russell or Cantwell and how many ballots will it take? A stellar cast with additional supporting roles from Margaret Leighton as Alice Russell, Edie Adams as Mabel Cantwell, Ann southern as Sue Ellen Gamadge, Shelly Berman as Sheldon Bascom and Kevin McCarthy as Dick Jensen. Shot by cinematographer Wexler who photographed Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf, Bound for Glory and One Flew over the Cuckoo's nest to name a few in his long respected career and is still filming today. Franklin Schaffer who directed such classics as Papillon, Patton, Planet of the Apes and The boys from Brazil directs. Robert Swink who edited Funny Girl, Roman Holiday and Boys from Brazil edits. It's a great cast and crew of filmmakers and worth a look to check out this black and white film from 1964 and compare notes with the then and now. I would give this an 8.0 out of 10.