LBJ - Review - Mind on Movies

R: November 3rd, 2017 | R: 98 minutes | R: R

LBJ explores the story of a man whose lifelong dream is to become President of the United States, but achieves his dream through circumstances that can only be described as a nightmare. This film explores Lyndon B. Johnson (Woody Harrelson), not as the political power who took over after the assassination of JFK, but as the sensitive and troubled man that longed to become the most powerful man in the world, while fearing the possibility of being disliked by the masses.

LBJ succeeds in bringing the audience into the minds of the many people that helped run the United States in the 1960s, and showing the true emotion, beliefs, and motivations of each of those people. There are no clear-cut heroes or villains in this film. Instead, we find characters that feel authentic to the audience with both good and bad personality traits. Each actor in the film presents the strengths, weaknesses and flaws that these people had, while also displaying the unbelievable stresses they endured while running the country after the assassination of the President.

Although this film is not innovative in the world of biopics, Harrelson’s performance as LBJ drives this story along in a fun way. He gives a new light to the personality of Lyndon B. Johnson, who was a surprisingly funny man that had an ego as big as his facial features. His rivalry with both John and Bobby Kennedy allow Harrelson to display the cockiness and also disappointment of being the Vice President that no one wanted to listen to.

The ending of this film is rather satisfying with Johnson becoming someone you want to root for after a captivating scene at the dinner table with his council. The subject of civil rights begins as an annoyance for Johnson and later evolves into a subject he is truly passionate about and ready to fight for.

Overall, I really enjoyed LBJ. The film reintroduced me to someone in history that I never cared to learn about by making him human, boosting the authenticity of each decision he made. If you’re interested in a behind the scenes look at one of the worst tragedies in US history, but told from a completely different perspective than ever before, go see LBJ.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Logan (Contributor) is a Texas native and a massive fan of all genres of film. You can find him talking about movies on YouTube as half of the CraZCouple or in line for the latest Star Wars/Comic Book film.
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