Best Actor 2018: Christian Bale in Vice

Christian Bale received his fourth Oscar nomination for portraying Dick Cheney in Vice.

Vice is a terrible film about the rise to power of Dick Cheney.

Vice being terrible is not from a single minor element, but from so many bad, or poorly executed ideas all smashed together like a jigsaw puzzle constructed by an infant. Sadly this is an infant who is constantly condescending to you how brilliant their jigsaw puzzle is and how stupid you are for not noticing how the pieces "should" fit together. Mind you this infant also claims that at the start of the puzzle making that he really was just guessing for the most part, but then at the end tells you all his choices are vetted facts. Of course when writing about this film I will need to digress now and again, as it is hard to not just constantly express my disdain for the overall film. I'm not strictly here for that, though this is going to come up a lot, as I'm here to discuss Christian Bale's performance in the film. This being Bale's second Oscar nominated turn directed by the infant...I mean Adam McKay, and the second where he plays largely a dramatic role despite being in the film that often leans towards the comic in tone, though very poorly mind you. There are a few performances though that are over the top and playing for the laughs, however Bale's isn't really the case, outside one minor detail that I will get to. Bale's here to give us the man that is Cheney, or at least the one allowed by McKay's film.

Cheney was previously portrayed, effectively, by Richard Dreyfuss in the more subtle examination of the Bush administration W. and you know when Oliver Stone is more subtle than you, you might  want to look at yourself carefully in the mirror. Any who, Dreyfuss is in an approximate type of Cheney as in if you hear the casting, you say " that makes sense". Bale on the other hand doesn't remotely look like Cheney or share any of the same mannerisms, so no matter what this was going to be an extreme transformation, which is essentially Bale's trademark at this point. This of course begins with the physical, which at this point it seems like he would amputate his fingers if a role called for, given the extent of weight he puts on here to be the right physical approximation of Cheney. There is more work though to done as Bale seeks to become a full embodiment of every little tic, from his way of tilting his head away from those he's speaking to, his grumbling from the side of his mouth, and just even his exact way of breathing. Bale hits each and every mark in this regard, and feels especially comfortable with these mannerisms, aided by some careful makeup, as the older Cheney. His younger Cheney is less clearly defined, but that has more to do with the script. I have no criticisms here as Bale successfully becomes Cheney physically more or less, and I do think it is beyond a parody impersonation.

I can certainly praise more about Bale's work in terms of his surface performance. Bale, as Dreyfuss did, captures this certain power of personality that is not related to charisma. Bale rather evokes this same sort of internalized determination in his delivery of Cheney's recommendations that seem so assured, that it makes it convincing he could persuade. His persuasion is not through charming those around him, it is rather being seemingly "right" in what he is telling them, and evoking this confidence in a very specific way. This being this quiet in many ways understated certainty. This in part comes from that delivery but also just physical confidence. In a way Bale successfully makes the less appealing physical marks of the character work towards this. In that many of his behaviors like not always looking people in the eye, and speaking out of the side of his mouth, that could be more of a more retiring sort. The power though is within that conviction that Bale realizes in this method, essentially as a man who doesn't need to face you constantly, as he knows, or at least believes he's above you, and doesn't need to speak loudly or directly at you, because he knows you will listen.

Now with Bale really all set to explore Cheney, having his surface qualities down, he just needs a good script to work with to make this an outstanding piece of acting, sadly he's got Vice's. I'll say the comedic tone attempted by the film isn't even the problem with this as Bale plays it straight, all except for the moments where Cheney is having a heart attack where he underplays his own concern. This is over the top by being so quiet as he shows so little worry at it, but I'll be perfectly honest, his delivery of these moments were the only things I found remotely funny in the film. Bale otherwise is consistent with the character as a mostly serious representation of the man, this is even with some terrible "bits" that McKay throws in there. The worst of them being having Cheney and his wife Lynne (Amy Adams), go into a bit of Shakespearean blank verse (not soliloquy as the film says, because it's not one person talking to him or herself) to dramatize his decision to take the vice presidency under George W. Bush (Sam Rockwell). This is frankly an embarrassing scene for both actors however Bale pushes himself through it with as much dignity as he can by just trying to deliver the words as naturally as he can. That is perhaps misguided on his part as it is still atrocious, and both actors look bad doing it.

Thankfully Bale doesn't have to deal with too many horrible bits along the way, but he does have to make sense of McKay's version of Cheney. McKay knows he's angry at Cheney, but just like an infant, his response comes off as more of tantrum than a well reasoned dismantlement of the man. A part of this is in the motivation of Cheney throughout the film. McKay decides to say Cheney's doing it solely for power to the point he shows Cheney becoming a Republican because he likes Donald Rumsfeld(Steve Carell)'s personal style. He goes so far to even have a moment where he asks Rumsfeld "what they believe". This is a ridiculous sentiment, and historically untrue, but above all it's just nonsensical to make this accusation. As a person who has firm beliefs can be just as horrible as someone who doesn't care, as you know this guy Adolf Hitler, had some very strong beliefs, yet still was a nadir of humanity. Anyway this leaves part of the film with Bale just doing this imposing force of "evil" act, and essentially every bad decision ever made, including the creation of ISIS, was done by Cheney's meddling according to McKay. Now that is a problematic in many ways, but one of the major ones is it basically makes the narrative, "Cheney did this, then this, then this, then this, then this, then this, then this" without any real insight into a single element of his political career. Bale in turn doesn't get enough of a chance to really do much past the surface other than portray the brutal force of will that is the man. Bale makes an impact with this to be sure, as his aforementioned realization of Cheney's personal style is effective. It sadly leaves thought the rise to power a rather bland one with Bale rarely getting to really sink his teeth into a scene to explore the character beyond a cursory point.

Of course McKay, I think accidentally, has another possible motivation or by way of only a single draft of the script I would imagine. This being the idea that he's doing it all for his family. This would at least explain the inexplicable, historically and otherwise, inclusion of a very thin conspiracy theory that Lynne Cheney's father killed her mother. I think this is in the film to show Cheney's protective spirit towards his family, though this is rather muddled if that was the case. I honestly don't think it quite as McKay seems timid to the idea of the scenes between Cheney and his family, since he doesn't know what to do with the idea of the loving father, going so far to fully support his lesbian daughter despite it not being politically viable for him. Having said that, while McKay doesn't know what to do with it, Bale does. In his scenes with his daughters, old or young, Bale brings a notable vulnerability and shows just the purest warmth of a father's love. I will especially give him credit in his scenes of comforting his daughter when she comes out to him, or his scene of near heart failure. Bale doesn't wink in the slightest just bringing the deepest tenderness in the moment, honestly depicting a father's love even if the man is questionable otherwise. McKay of course feels he has to lampshade that even with his laborious ending where he tries to argue a case for Cheney's betrayal of his daughter afterall, though this is an especially poorly written bit to which Bale has little involvement.

Anyway I think a far more compelling narrative could've been created stemming from Cheney seeking to protect and build his family no matter the cost if it had been better supported by the script. As Bale is most compelling in this regard, and this seems like a more believable motivation, than just a guy who wants power for the sake of it. This is as it fails to explain why he would be so specific in his endeavors involving the war on terror, McKay seems to suggest he abuses the power just to do so I guess, not for any personal reason, which is pretty dumb. The alternate motivation does work though, and again it genuinely seems like this Bale's take, despite McKay's efforts otherwise, when we arrive to Bale's last scene in the film, which was evidently Bale's idea. It's a legitimately great scene for Bale, from the outset when we see a reporter talking to him. This is the one scene we get to see Cheney fully in the public eye, and Bale's great in putting on the false bit of affability in his slight smile, trying to be a little less coldhearted. He of course then breaks the fourth wall, Bale's idea, but the speech, and Bale's approach plays into that more potent motivation for Cheney's actions. This idea that his "protection" of his family essentially goes to these extremes to destroy all enemies domestic and especially abroad. Bale reveals this quite effectively in his emotional break as this unrepentant, vicious, yet honestly passionate portrayal of the man's conviction to his beliefs. It has a real power through Bale's delivery, that offers a greater depth than he was allowed to reveal for the majority of the film. This brief scene makes me wish that Bale had been in a far better film about the subject. Bale is on point, and at times finds more than is on the page, and often independently rises above his material. Although the weaknesses of this film limit what Bale can do with the character, it is a good performance in an atrocious film.