Swing Vote - C-

On DVD. 120 minutes you'll never get back.

At the height of his career, Kevin Costner was referred to a modern-day Gary Cooper, and 15+ years later, Swing Vote places him in a Capra-esque story in the same vein as Meet John Doe. Costner plays Bud Johnson, a drunken, underachieving single dad whose 10 year old daughter Molly is surprisingly well-versed in politics and the mechanics of voting. The night of the presidential election, the recently laid-off Bud decides to get drunk instead of meeting Molly at his polling station. She was there to insist he perform his civic duty and after it’s clear he won’t show, she sneaks past a sleeping election official and votes. But the computer makes an error and the vote doesn’t register. As it turns out, that single vote will decide the presidential election and Bud is courted by the media, as well as Democrat candidate Dennis Hopper and Republican candidate Kelsey Grammer . . .

Costner tries to revive his aw-shucks movie star persona by laughing at his own jokes, using a Southern drawl (in New Mexico), and dressing down. But Bud is so unlikable and irresponsible that his situation is totally unsympathetic. He’s constantly late for work, encourages his daughter to skip school, and uses tons of bad language around her. As Molly, Madeline Carroll gives way too many preachy diatribes to be likable or believable and her precociousness is ludicrous. Hopper and Grammer don’t try anything they haven’t done well before, but Mare Winningham is excellent in a single scene as Costner’s ex. Writers Jason Richman and Joshua Michael Stern (who also directs) have an overly simplistic view of modern politics and pretend to show both sides, but it’s clear (and predictable) where their hearts lie. The only memorable directorial touch is 10 Republicans standing like bowling pins in a commercial which then suddenly cuts to Bud rolling a strike at a bowling alley.The faux-commercials showing Democrats against illegal immigration and abortion are humorous, but nothing else really works. Of course, the movie gets serious at the end and tries to show how every vote counts. There’s inappropriate use slow-motion out the yin-yang. Everybody learns something and the audience vomits. But as the 2004 Washington state gubernatorial election and the 2008 Minnesota Senatorial election have shown, every vote does not count. Lawyers, judges, and biased local election officials are much more important than a single vote. The movie wants to show how everyone must be responsible. It’s a new era of responsibility after all. Or not. I doubt Bud will ever stop drinking to save money for food and health insurance. C-