GRADE: B
THIS FILM IS RECOMMENDED.
IN BRIEF: A well-made documentary that exposes the corruption of our government and the divisiveness of our nation in its biased but effective view of three Republican Congressmen as the main subjects (suspects?).
JIM'S REVIEW: From my rather short list of films this year compared to other years, there has been a surge in viewing of documentaries in 2020. So far a quarter of them have been this genre. Streaming services have given filmmakers a soapbox to promote their personal projects and the range of subjects has been a varied lot.
Which brings us to The Swamp. Granted, it's not the place one wants to generally visit, but it does make for interesting viewing. This informative documentary follows the new Congress of 2019 and some of its more conservative members. Documentarians Morgan Pehme and Daniel DiMauro hone in on three Republican congressmen, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Rep. Ken Buck of Colorado, and Matt Gaetz of Florida, as the figureheads in their biased but fascinating exposé. Depending on one's own political stance, this thought-provoking muck-raking tell-all can be seen as right-wing propaganda to bring about a conservative agenda or a left-wing cautionary tale about the loss of liberal values in our nation. Either way, this cool conservative men are portrayed as sincere crusaders or glib hucksters, take your pick. (I choose the latter.)
The filmmakers are able to show many behind-the-scenes moments from these men which makes for interesting "reality TV entertainment". This trio of lawmakers align with the very conservative Freedom Caucus and staunch supporters of President Trump. They come off as powerful but insincere preachers of political reform as long as everything goes their way. Their hypocrisy is evident in scenes depicting their own political stunt-making tactics in front of the TV cameras and continued hyperbolic rhetoric for their "good ole American causes". Fake news is the name of this game and they doth protest too much.
We witness the political wasteland of false promises, mismanagement of funds, corruption, and personal profits that befall these rich leaders. We watch as special interest groups and wealthy donors contribute to the "Greed is Good" philosophy and corrode American values. The discussion of lobbyists leads to a surprising admission of hidden price tags for committee seats paid off by these special interest groups, like the NRA, and wealthy donors. This costly economic lesson forms the groundwork for Congress to rely upon and the reason why change can never exist. The film gives us a backstage tour at the constant year-long campaigning, the long-standing outcries for change and reform, the non-stop fund-raising efforts, the partisan spins, and all of the show-biz hoopla surrounding Congress all go to undermine our republic, with no real reform in sight. Washington's dysfunction is rampant and this film shows its chaos.
The documentary is well-made, but liberal in its viewpoint. Congressmen Ro Khanna, Larry Lessig, and John Sarbanes are only a few of the Democrats seen in the film. While they are sometimes in agreement with their colleagues, they question partisanship over the country and the erosion of American values. More opposing views of the DC quagmire would have made the film more impact. The filmmakers' message becomes slightly belabored and defused. The "rah-rah America" rhetoric from this Congressional trio downplays the rise of lobbyists during the Trump administration. In fact, Mr. Gaetz earnestly wants to impress his constituents, but he comes off as an impressionable opportunist, a starry-eyed poster boy for Trump. Sadly, he is his obedient servant, not the people's.
In fact, both Republican and Democratic lawmakers try to come off as the voice of the people fighting against corruption, but their actions do not match their words. The impeachment inquiry becomes center-stage fodder with Representatives Gaetz and Buck interrogating Robert Mueller, while Massie admits to only reading 20% of the report. Actual archival footage of the hearing and the disrupting stunt of storming a meeting by Republicans makes one wonder about these lawmakers' private agendas and their need for financing their offices to be a contributing factor of their own survival. (Strangely missing is the egotistic Mr. Gaetz's gas mask stunt to protest COVID-19.)
One of the film's highlights is a visual analogy of the Congressional Pin as it relates to The Lord of the Rings trilogy and its power of that "precious" piece of jewelry. It is an intriguing comparison. The filmmakers effectively intercut images from that epic film comparing the morphing of lawmakers into becoming good Hobbits or evil Gollums.
At times, the film frustrate. The ideologies of contrasting liberal and conservative opinions will always be in play and the filmmakers reinforce that fact but do little to advance any solutions. Their interviews with their subjects are lightweight and not as forceful as they could have been. Things change and yet nothing changes.
The Swamp effectively shows the cycle of ineptitude, but never shows any conclusions. All of these lawmakers' actions are mired in hollow words and strong platitudes that only serve to keep us lost in their nowhere land of incompetence. Congress is an easy target now, but then it has always, and will always, be a broken system, despite all of our efforts to cry foul. The politics of hate masquerades as truth and the documentary simultaneously supports and protests its outrage to "drain the swamp".
The Swamp is an aptly-named film and a metaphor of our divisive times. It is an important film that should be viewed by every voter and questions the governmental power over the people rather than for the people.
