“McKay” (Robert Redford) is your stereotypical protest lawyer in California who is drafted in to fight the incumbent Republican “Crocker” (Don Porter) in what would appear to be little more than a box-ticking exercise for the Democrats. He only agrees to run if he is allowed by his election agent “Marvin” (Peter Boyle) to pretty much do and say what he likes throughout the campaign. Before long, that frankness and candour starts to resonate with an electorate coming to terms with some profound social and economic issues whilst already being represented by a man who has become somewhat distant and institutionalised by Washington and by a long term in the Senate. As the enthusiastic young man’s efforts gather pace, his erstwhile rather cynical advisor starts to take things more seriously and begins to impose himself on this fly by the seat of your pants process. If “McKay” is to actually succeed, just what and where is he going to have to compromise? Redford is a natural here and brings a degree of authenticity to hustings that all too often come across as being a procedure in which the voter is taken for granted. His ineptness, bluntness and open-mindedness is seen by many of his constituents as a source of hope and optimism, and he delivers that characterisation charismatically well. It’s set in the USA at the start of the 1970s, but it could quite readily be transferred to so many democracies where parliamentarians are elected and routinely re-elected based largely on the colour of their rosettes rather than on their representatives striving to serve the evolving needs of the communities. Although this doesn’t really offer us anything particularly revelatory, it’s a keen look at the effects of rocking the boat. Will he win, though?
