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Movies / On DVD / Primary Colors
Primary Colors

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Primary Colors (1998)

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79 %
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Reviews Counted:73

Fresh:58

Rotten:15

Average Rating:7.2/10

Consensus: Well acted and suprisingly funny.

Runtime: 2 hrs 24 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: In Mike Nichols's PRIMARY COLORS, America's topsy-turvy political process is viewed through the eyes of Henry Burton (Adrian Lester), an idealistic young man who is seduced into managing the... In Mike Nichols's PRIMARY COLORS, America's topsy-turvy political process is viewed through the eyes of Henry Burton (Adrian Lester), an idealistic young man who is seduced into managing the presidential campaign of slick southern governor Jack Stanton (John Travolta). The mesmerized Burton immediately sets up campaign headquarters and meets his new political family: Susan Stanton (Emma Thompson), Jack's wife and partner; Richard Jemmons (Billy Bob Thornton), the sly, improbable political strategist who proudly describes himself as a redneck; Libby Holden (Kathy Bates), the fanatically loyal, overtly lesbian campaign troubleshooter who always has a big mouth and occasionally carries a big gun to match; and Daisy (Maura Tierney), the young, smart, and looking-for-love campaign media adviser. The film is based on the controversial best-selling novel by Anonymous (Joe Klein). Travolta's dead-on, thinly disguised Clinton impersonation alone is well worth seeing. [More]

Starring: John Travolta, Emma Thompson, Kathy Bates, Billy Bob Thornton

Starring: John Travolta, Emma Thompson, Kathy Bates, Billy Bob Thornton, Adrian Lester, Maura Tierney, Larry Hagman, Allison Janney, Paul Guilfoyle

Director: Mike Nichols

Director: Mike Nichols
Screenwriter: Elaine May
Producer: Mike Nichols

[See More Credits]

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Release:

May 4, 1999

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for Primary Colors

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1 - 20 (sorted by rotten rating)
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The sad part is that while any old hack could have directed Primary Colors about as well as Nichols did, the kinds of movies that only Mike Nichols' brains and sensibility could produce hardly ever get made anymore.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner | comment Comment
01/01/00
Barbara Shulgasser
Barbara Shulgasser
San Francisco Examiner

A slack, tepid picture stuck in a no man's land between satire and drama.

Full Review Source: Salon.com | comment Comment
01/01/00
Charles Taylor
Charles Taylor
Salon.com

It's hard for me fully to express how deeply rotten I think Primary Colors is. Adjectives like 'glib,' 'coarse,' and 'sour' don't fully do it.

Full Review Source: Slate | comment Comment
01/01/00
David Edelstein
David Edelstein
Slate

The film owes a few doggie bones to "Wag the Dog," which came first in pointing out what Primary Colors only seconds.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
11/03/08
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

As satire, it's toothless and indulgent; as drama of conscience, it's not a patch on real life...

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Derek Adams
Derek Adams
Time Out

No review available.

comment Comment
04/02/05
Garth Franklin
Garth Franklin
Dark Horizons

Dramatically weak.

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
01/01/00
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The book was explicit in its indictment of Clinton (or his clone or whatever), but the movie, while keeping most of the storyline the same and many of the scenes literally verbatim, still manages to tiptoe around the issue of personal responsibility.

Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | comment Comment
02/27/01
James Kendrick
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk

The film seldom displays much in the way of directorial hallmarks.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
01/01/00
Janet Maslin
Janet Maslin
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

May and Nichols may not be right for the material, especially the Searching for Jimmy Stewart component, which feels more labored as the film proceeds.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jeff Millar
Jeff Millar
Houston Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Doesn't know when to quit while it's ahead.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
01/01/00
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

Like the politicians it criticizes, the film loses sight of its ideals.

Full Review Source: Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL) | comment Comment
06/18/02
Jeffrey Westhoff
Jeffrey Westhoff
Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)

The movie loses something by downplaying the book's arresting contrast between Stanton's smooth dishonesty and Picker's raw sincerity.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Mick LaSalle
Mick LaSalle
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A mush of oversimplified ethics.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
01/01/00
Steve Davis
Steve Davis
Austin Chronicle

There are piecemeal wonders in Primary Colors, but not the grand and resonant vision the film should have been.

comment Comment
01/01/00
Tom Keogh
Tom Keogh
Film.com
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

No review available.

comment Comment
07/12/02
Globe and Mail

No review available.

comment Comment
02/27/01
USA Today

Despite the political milieu's rampant cynicism, the movie remains optimistic -- no mean feat.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
01/01/00
E! Online

A gripping drama edged with sly humour.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
01/01/00
Almar Haflidason
Almar Haflidason
BBC

Both a celebration and an indictment of the American political system.

Full Review Source: rec.arts.movies.reviews | comment Comment
01/01/00
Bob Bloom
Bob Bloom
rec.arts.movies.reviews
 
 
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