I am – Hercules!!


A look at the controversial presidential balloting in Florida during the 2000 Gore-Bush contest, “Recount” was written by actor Danny Strong, who played Nerd of Doom Jonathan Levinson on “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” and Paris Gellar’s journalist boyfriend Doyle on “Gilmore Girls.” Sydney Pollack (“The Electric Horseman,” “Tootsie”) was originally going to direct it, but it ultimately came to be helmed by Jay Roach (the “Austin Powers” and “Meet The Parents” movies).

The cast includes Kevin Spacey, Denis Leary, John Hurt, Tom Wilkinson, Bruce McGill, regular Christopher Guest players Ed Begley Jr. and Bob Balaban, and Laura Dern as Florida secretary of state Katherine Harris.

Entertainment Weekly gives it an “A-minus” and says:

… With an extremely clever script by debut screenwriter Danny Strong, Recount introduces a landslide of facts with sweaty grace, intertwining scripted scenes with actual broadcast-news clips. Anytime a moment feels overblown — like the choreographed carnival of protesters outside the Florida Supreme Court recount proceeding — up flashes some vintage CNN to remind us that the atmosphere actually was that insane. (Remember the ''Surrender Gorethy'' airplane banner?) …

TV Guide says:

… crisply told, colorfully acted Recount wants to be both legal thriller and nightmare farce …

The Wall Street Journal says:

… Even viewers who had thought they never wanted to hear about a dimpled chad again will find that "Recount" moves along at a satisfying clip and can make the old drama and suspense seem surprisingly fresh. …

The New York Times says:

… astute and deliciously engrossing …

The Los Angeles Times says:

… "Recount" may be the best political movie since "All the President's Men." With an outstanding cast and finely tuned script, "Recount" not only transcends all its potential problems, it also captures both the grim party politics, the strange collision of personalities and the obsessive heroics of a moment that was, for better or worse, unlike any other. …

The Washington Post says:

… an electrifying slapstick tragedy about a mad moment in American politics, a moment that must never happen again but easily could. … Writer Danny Strong tells the story with enviable skill and artful urgency. He makes such a good case for the seriousness of the situation -- even though it is laced with self-satirizing farce -- that some viewers might want to ask him, "Where were you eight years ago?" The film would have had a perhaps more practical, tangible effect if done closer to the time of the imbroglio depicted. ...

The Chicago Tribune says:

… intermittently compelling … Amazingly enough, the film's almost cruel depiction of her could actually inspire a bit of sympathy for Florida's former secretary of state, the imperious, much mocked and makeup-caked Kathleen Harris. …

The San Francisco Chronicle says:

… Though everybody knows that Republican George W. Bush won the presidency in 2000 by defeating Democrat Al Gore in a hotly contested election, "Recount" manages to keep the suspense taut throughout. … Dern's portrayal is outrageously funny and will no doubt seem painfully (and impressively) spot on to Democrats, but ultimately it plays more like the best "Saturday Night Live" spoof ever in the Harris oeuvre.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says:

… entertaining … there's no suspense about the outcome, but following the twisted, oftentimes maddening journey to that point is filled with tension and dark humor. …

The Boston Globe says:

… just doesn't manage to make a compelling narrative out of the 2000 fiasco …

Variety says:

… Smart, star-studded and anchored by another fine-tuned performance from Kevin Spacey, "Recount" finds the sweet spot between theatrical fare and TV that's precisely the constituency HBO wants to reach -- a bracing tonic for the pay net's battered "It's not TV" slogan. …

The Hollywood Reporter says:

… has well-written characters, first-class acting and confident directing, which produces a level of tension and suspense you wouldn’t expect in a story about a widely reported recent event. …

9 p.m. Sunday. HBO.