Mr. Smith Reviews

Michael Wilmington gives it one of the worst reviews I’ve seen and it’s pretty positive:

espite that sour-sounding title, a far more heartening view of politics than ” . . . So Goes the Nation’s” can be found in this little documentary by St. Louis’ Frank Popper about a quixotic campaign by little guy Jeff Smith to win the Democratic primary in pursuit of Dick Gephardt’s old Missouri congressional seat. That’s “little” in physical stature, not in heart. Part-time poli-sci instructor Smith, who played high school basketball in fast company and has a mean cross-over dribble, wages a hard-fought, eloquent campaign, despite being an unknown underdog running against Russ Carnahan, a member of a Missouri political dynasty.

We see it all, from Smith’s endorsement by kindred spirit Howard Dean to the calls, the canvassing, and the strategizing (by political newcomers) to the first really bad negative ad: Carnahan’s team accuses Smith of being a “strange bedfellow.” Hmmmm. The movie, like Smith, is breezy, fun and keeps comin’ at ya. Politics needs more of this and less of what went on in Ohio.

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The Sun-Times chimes in with:

“Can Mr. Smith Get to Washington Anymore?”

Critic’s rating: 2 and a half stars

“You guys ever see that movie ‘Mr. Smith Goes to Washington’?”

Congressional candidate Jeff Smith asks prospective voters at the Oak Hill Community Center in South St. Louis. “Well, you can help make the sequel.”

Director, cinematographer, editor and co-writer Frank Popper trails Smith as he campaigns in the 2004 Democratic primary for Missouri’s 3rd District.

The seat long occupied by retiring Rep. Dick Gephardt (D) is open. Russ Carnahan, a lackluster contender with a famous name in local politics, is the likely winner. Smith’s own family is skeptical. Largely absent from this good-natured, grass-roots documentary, they seem unwilling to lend moral or fiscal support.

Popper depicts the zeal of the boyish Smith, a part-time political science instructor, as he knocks on drs and makes cell phone calls. Smith gets great results from a direct mail piece bearing a scary photo of the former attorney general with the message: “If John Ashcroft is for it, I’m probably against it.”

“Can Mr. Smith Get to Washington Anymore?” is an amusing case study in youthful enthusiasm for the electoral process, but this modest documentary skips the weighty issues posed by its namesake, the Frank Capra 1939 drama.