Miss Sloane (2016)

In a roller-coaster year for political intrigue on both sides of the Atlantic, and with all hell breaking loose again between Trump and 'The Hill', here comes "Miss Sloane".

Jessica Chastain ( "The Martian", "Interstellar") plays the titular heroine (I use the term loosely): a pill-popping insomniac who is working herself into an early grave as a top-Washington lobbyist. The game of lobbying is, as she describes, staying one step of the competition and "playing your trump card just after your opponent has played theirs". But all is not going well for Elizabeth Sloane. For the film opens with her being on trial for corruption in front of a congressional hearing, chaired by Senator Sperling (John Lithgow, "The Accountant").

Through flashback we see how she got to that point, moving from one firm headed by George Dupont (Sam Waterston, "The Killing Fields") to another headed by Rodolfo Schmidt (Mark Strong, "Kick Ass", "Kingsman: The Secret Service") against the backdrop of the high-stakes lobbying around a new gun-control bill. Her fanatical drive to 'win at all costs', and the trail of destruction, through her cutthroat work ethic, that she leaves behind her, digs her an ever-deeper hole as the political and legal net closes in around her.

Jessica Chastain has played strong and decisive women before, most notably in "Zero Dark Thirty", but probably never to this extreme degree. Here she is like Miranda Priestly from "The Devil Wears Prada", but not played for laughs. Miss Sloane is an emotionally and physically damaged woman, but a formidable one who takes charge both in the boardroom and in the bedroom, through the unashamed use of male escorts (in the well-muscled form of Jake Lacy, "Their Finest"). As such her character is not remotely likable, but one the I could certainly relate to from past business dealings I've had. (And no, I don't mean as a male prostitute!)

I found Sloane to be one of the more fascinating characters in this year's releases: I was never being sure whether her actions are being powered from a background of strong moral conviction (fuelled by a devastating childhood incident perhaps?) or through pure greed and lust for power. I thought Chastain excelled in the role, but for balance the illustrious Mrs Mann thought she rather overplayed her hand at times.

Outside of Chastain's central performance though, this is a very strong ensemble cast. Mark Strong – not with an English accent for once and not playing a heavy – is great as the frustrated boss, as is the seldom-seen Sam Waterston (who, by the way, is the father of Katherine Waterston of current "Alien: Covenant" fame). Christine Baranski (so good in "The Good Wife" and now "The Good Fight") pops up in a cameo as a flinty Senator. But the outstanding turn for me was Oxford-born Gugu Mbatha-Raw ("Belle", "Beauty and the Beast" – and yes, I'm aware of the irony in this pairing!). Playing Sloane's colleague Esme Manucharian – both a lady with a secret in her past as well as possessing a great name – Mbatha-Raw is just riveting and deserving of a Supporting Actress nomination in my book.

What binds the whole two hours together is an extraordinarily skillful script by debut writer Jonathan Perera, which has both a gripping and ever-twisting story as well as a host of quotable lines. Ladies and gentlemen,

Fmovies: This movie is awesome. One of the best pictures I've ever seen. Very strong emotionally. The performances are top notch; all of them. But In my opinion, this is Jessica Chastain's all time best role. She deserved at least an "actress in a leading role" nomination. She achieves a better performance level than Natalie Portman - "jackie", Isabelle Huppert - Elle" or even the winner - Emma Stone in "La La Land". Again, my opinion, of course. The interest prediction on this movie describes an ideal curve, growing strongly from the start till the end. And at the end it explodes in a rainbow of emotions you could never predict. It's absolutely astonishing. Loved it.

I picked this movie without prejudice, as I hadn't heard a word about it. And I loved it!!!

The tempo is sustained, the performances outstanding. An interesting story with a twist, well written, and the perfect cast.

One element that also enhances the movie: its diversity. Multi-faceted characters which gives spice to the story's meat.

The only downside: the way love is given a bad name. How do you want the youth to connect if you keep telling them that love ain't the sh*t?? It is a recurrent theme in 21st century cinema that i condemn, because it perpetuates mechanic sex--humans deprived from feelings. I am for a little more optimism in that domain and the human species.

My 2cents; LM ARNAL

Miss Sloane fmovies. i can tell that the gun lobby is also active on IMDb. this movie is straight told with unexpected moves. it is realistic as well as true. but in a world of alternative facts difficult to accept. it goes on too long far too long.. it has to stop here and today. the connection with the gun lobby and the senate is authentic. the characters are real. what i liked most of all was the fact that everyone is selling out anyone except the call-boy. in this world of business and in the world of politics , the decent one is the one who sells his body. while everybody would kill for their ego or for wealth.. he remains sincere and surreal . the whore is the only person with ethics and value is messed up world is quite a message, although it had little to do with the main story... again i feel disgusted by the reviews who have nothing to do with the movie but a lot with their political views... the reviews prove this movie is true!

Just watched the movie and I have to say I'm shocked that it's rated so low on IMDb, as I have watched much, MUCH worse movies with better ratings. Scrolling to evidentially biased ratings and reviews I'm giving it a 10, just hoping it will balance out the harm done. Jessica Chastain delivered great performance, but she wasn't the only one, whole crew was really good, but she really did earn that globe nomination. Furthermore, movie is beautifully captured, cinematography is great and whole atmosphere is really nice. The last but not the least, it's a great thriller, with an unpredictable twist and not boring for a moment. I do understand it's might be different experience watching it for an European audience, as from the start second amendment and gun legislative is for most of us here absurd, however, although I can understand that for some Americans it might seem one sided story, my question is aren't many of story lines one sided, to be honest it's not advertised as documentary, so why should you even expect other side to be equally represented? Strongly recommend to give this movie attention it deserves.

Fantastic movie - exceptional acting, intricate plot, suspenseful scenes throughout and an unbelievable twist at the end, which was impossible to predict.

Whilst some gun-tooting viewers may not appreciate the biased view towards the need for greater gun control measures (a point so intelligently made by drawing an analogy with car ownership), there can be no doubting the quality of this piece of work from a cinematographic perspective.

The recurrent theme not of gun ownership issues but rather of aberrant behaviour by self-serving politicians, if indeed not evident corruption and nepotism, is a theme that will strike a strong cord in many Western countries today, and lead us to question what democracy actually means in a world where money plays the role of god.