It's not easy to delve into corruption from the point of view of the politicians.
At least that is what I told myself as I was leaving "City Hall",
Al Pacino's latest. He was riveting, especially in the funeral scene.
But then I realize that I'm trying to like a movie that went nowhere. From
the onset the audience knows who is going to end up crooked, it just takes
two hours for the film to get there. Pacino is the mayor of New York trying
to deal with a cop and drug dealer who not only shoot it out on the streets,
but also involve an innocent child. John Cusack is his deputy mayor and
he manages to portray a man who understands the gritty reality of "politics
as usual" while still honestly believing that he and the mayor can
make a difference. It isn't an easy position to take when 99.9 % of the
American population is distrustful of politicians, but he is so earnest
that we believe. But I'm too much of a cynic to believe completely. When
Pacino's mayor cries indignation over the deaths in the city, I felt that
all politicians are essentially actors. And that may be the point.
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