The Apprentice: Glitz and Greed

The Apprentice is an eerie look into the background of one of the world's most powerful people, masterfully played by Sebastian Stan, and insightfully meditates on the all-consuming nature of power.

Rating: 6.6/10

Highlights

• Sebastian Stan perfectly emulates Trump

• Well-bound in scope

• Great costuming

Lowlights

• More background on Trump's earlier days would've been helpful

• Doesn't exactly compel any positive feelings

• Fails to stand on its own merit as a work of art

Watching The Apprentice gave me a newfound perspective on Trump's actions today. It's somewhat validating to hear one of his lies and know he's only following the rules of Roy Cohn given to him decades ago. As a piece of art, The Apprentice is nothing of note — it's an objectively informative look into why a powerful person is the way he is and goes as far as to implicitly condemn the insatiable thirst for power possessed by the lead character, but there is no particularly deep message or impactful artistic layer. Regardless, the film successfully humanizes a man who fights against being seen as anything other than infinitely powerful and smart, and did so in a visually appealing and well-acted manner. The Apprentice certainly goes beyond a political statement, and its glitzy visuals and storytelling are its strongest assets.

Liked The Apprentice? Check out Vice, another biopic on an important political figure and dive into the power that came to consume him.

Watch the trailer!