This is How Movies Should Be Made

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

Segorney Weaver was a powerhouse back in the 80's, but her acting is a bit rusty in this series. This was not a role for her. The plot was excellent, the acting was excellent (with the exception of Segorney Weaver). I didn't find her believable, her acting skills fell flat, I watched two episodes and just couldn't watch any longer. The character that plays her ex husband was a bit creepy and disturbing to look at. I gave it 4 stars for the plot. I just couldn't watch it anymore. I guess it's not the 80's anymore when she ruled the Alien franchise. I guess now we know this only lasted 1 season (6 episodes). I was surprised and disappointed at the same time.

As virtually everyone has observed, this show is transparently a paean to Hillary Clinton. Her Sigourney Weaver avatar is portrayed as something combining a god and a comic book superhero. The dialog lays it on very thickly that she is a supreme being, including inserting praise where the situation does not call for it.The format is obviously inspired by "The West Wing". It is preachy and has lots of expository dialog, but where "The West Wing" had a rapier, this show has a sledgehammer. TWW's Aaron Sorkin has an incomparable ear for such dialog, but the dialog writers here seem to be fleshing out a PowerPoint presentation.As of the end of the pilot episode, rather than having empathy for various of the characters, my reaction ranged from dislike to detesting them. The Hillary-avatar has none of the appeal of President Bartlet in "The West Wing".Too many story lines were introduced in the pilot, and introduced badly. First, they disrupted establishing the key characters, and second, they were largely uninteresting, seeming to have originated from two checklists: one for audience demographics and one for hackneyed plot elements.I thought the acting was mediocre to poor, with the Bill Clinton character being hammy, with relentless mugging. But this could just be that the actors weren't given good material to work with.The direction and camera work was poor: In most shows, I am rarely aware of actors hitting their marks and striking poses, but here it just leaped out at me. The artificiality of the visuals compounded/highlighted the artificiality of the dialog (or vice versa).

Let's see what happened with this one -- a good start for a strong female lead. Sigourney Weaver is a great choice for the lead. Plays to some stereotypes but otherwise is a good addition to the line-up. Kieran is a good choice for the Bill Clintonesque former husband of the president. Any comparisons to Hillary Clinton is intentional, but what's wrong with that? Taking a real-life figure and creating a character for entertainment is a long-accepted trope. Ellen Burstyn is a great choice, too. Keep your eye on this one. If you let the characters develop beyond their stereotypes, you may actually enjoy the series.

"Political Animals" is a show about the connection of politics, media and family affairs. I enjoyed the pilot and can't hardly wait to see the next episode. Although the story was a bit predictable, the acting, the dialog and the settings were great. I especially loved the funny lines of Ellen Burstyn as the Ex-Presidents mom and the plot of Sebastian Stan as the troubled gay son. What a rich leading part for the talented Sigourney Weaver, still looking stunning at the age of 62. She is the woman America should vote for: smart, brave and honest. Conclusion: It's a prime time soap at its best. *** "Never call a bitch a bitch, us bitches hate that."