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Critics Consensus: Well acted and suprisingly funny.
Critic Consensus: Well acted and suprisingly funny.
All Critics (77) | Top Critics (22) | Fresh (62) | Rotten (15) | DVD (4)
Primary Colors perfectly captures the spirit of its topic and time to become The Big Chill of politics.
As satire, it's toothless and indulgent; as drama of conscience, it's not a patch on real life...
Travolta's warmth and expansiveness effectively amplify and embellish the likable and personable side of Stanton.
A smart and savvy piece of work.
Dramatically weak.
The film seldom displays much in the way of directorial hallmarks.
If you take away the eerie similarities to the Clinton campaign,Primary Colors serves as a fine satire in its own right.
Well-acted drama full of Clinton-era jabs.
A savvy and thought-provoking look at the nature of contemporary American politics.
Travolta is amazingly Clintonesque as Stanton, a role that I never believed he could pull off.
The film owes a few doggie bones to "Wag the Dog," which came first in pointing out what Primary Colors only seconds.
Primary Colors successfully straddles the line between comedy and tragedy.
This movie did not age well. There's a scene early in the democratic primary race where everyone in a packed diner is glued to the small television set, watching and commenting on an interview - "Today Show" style - of our candidate and his wife. Either our political culture was very different back in 1992, or this is an example of the movie's unrealistic, self-absorbed sensationalism. Without any clear sense of direction, we watch the plot stumble into one manufactured problem after another. Instead of insight into modern politics, we get guns, drugs, heart attacks, old men sleeping with 17 year olds, and gay sex - all in one race to become the democratic nominee.
Super Reviewer
Primary Colours is a political satire following a southern governor who bears a striking resemblance to Bill Clinton on his presidential campaign trail. This film was obviously aimed far more at mainstream audiences than I was hoping for and so seems very tame to anyone used to the likes of The Thick Of It or even 70s sitcom Yes Minister. The story is shown through the eyes of the idealistic grandson of a civil rights activist played by Adrian Lester, but as we don't get to learn much about him, there is little in the way of emotional involvement; in fact the whole "human drama" aspect of it felt very forced. Travolta's drawling womaniser is shown to be basically an honest and straight talking man with one flaw, and this lack of satirical bite also compromises his character. What does make this film however are the supporting characters; partly Billy Bob Thornton's red neck adviser but mainly Kathy Bates who tears through the film like a large lesbian version of hurricane Katrina. She has the best character and most of the best lines as a disillusioned ex-activist but once again the outcome of her part in the story felt a bit contrived and hollow. It does have wit, intelligence and a message, namely that this era of spin is a Frankenstain's monster that the complicity of a gossip-hungry public and sensationalist media have helped create, and it is always engaging; I just wished it had the cynical, satirical teeth to go in for the kill.
A well done, if though occasionally flawed, political comedy/drama that features two golden performances from John Travolta and Kathy Bates. While it does get over-dramatic at some parts and some of the characters could've been fleshed out a tad better, for the most part this is a well executed take on politics and how the people involved in them are never what they seem to be. I wish they had left the ending open-ended and daring the viewer to make their own choice as to what they would do in the situation posed in the film's conclusion, but I understand Nichols instead going with the more accepting finale.
#4 Primary Colours Okay, technically, Travolta doesn?t play a president in Primary Colours, he plays a presidential candidate. But it can be argued that Travolta?s character - a womanizing, intelligent Southern governor - is based upon the pre-presidential days of one William Jefferson Clinton (Bill to us). President Speak: "We can do incredible things. We can change this country. I'm gonna win this thing. Look me in the eye, Henry, and tell me that you don't want to be a part of it."
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