Election (1999)

I think a good satire has a soft spot for what it is satirizing. Christopher Guest, who helmed the wonderful "Waiting for Guffmann" and even better "Best in Show," refused to call his work "mockumentaries," which is the term by which his films were often referred. He believed that the term "mock" was an unfair description of satire, because he was not making fun of his subjects, but joining them and bringing their spirit to the screen. If the films themselves are funny, it is not because the subjects are worthy of ridicule, but it is because the subjects take themselves more seriously than the audience does.

"Election" is one of my favorite films of all time, because writer/director Alexander Payne creates a satire here that pokes fun, but in such an assuredly loving manner that the entire audience shares the same soft spot for the film's characters. We laugh at them not because they represent broad caricatures or cartoonish representations of traditionally funny stereotypes, but because in almost all the scenes, they seem as real as can possibly be. The humor in this satire, like Guest's films, stems from watching the subjects take themselves seriously, but we believe in the sincerity and genuine feeling with which they conduct their actions or speak their words. It is not an easy trick to pull off.

The film stars Reese Witherspoon as Tracy Flick, the culmination of every ruthless, amibitious overachiever that all of us who ever attended a public high school remember. She is running unopposed for the position of president of her school's student body because, in her mind and in the minds of the rest of her classmates, it is the next logical step in a high school career that has included every possible resume-bloater available. Tracy isn't disliked, but she is alienated by her own determination and sense of self-destiny.

Standing in her way is Mr. Jim McAllister, a popular and veteran teacher of history and civics, played by Matthew Broderick. Behind his smiles and voice-over claims of unfettered happiness, the sight of Tracy Flick barreling down the road of success greatly irks him. He recruits the "most popular kid in school" Paul Metzler, played by Chris Klein in his first ever acting role, to run against Tracy in the school election, hoping to topple what he believes an evil force that threatens humanity beyond the borders of Carver High School.

It is the seriousness with which this set of protagonist and antagonist (which character is which depends entirely upon which side you choose) take this school election that makes up the wonderful satirical tapestry of this film. Payne then proceeds to decorate it with snippets of mundane, mid-western suburban life (the film is set in a suburb of Omaha, Nebraska) that, contrasted with the hilarious surfacings of taboo but clearly extant elements (student-teacher affairs, infidelity, teenage raunchiness), make for a delightfully skewed satire that makes small jabs at familiar stereotypes without denying that they exist for a reason. Payne realizes that sometimes truth can be funnier on its own than when it is ridiculed.

One of my favorite moments in film is when Tracy first sees Paul Metzler's campaign table across the cafeteria. The camera zooms to her face and the soundtrack blares a harsh, strident banshee war cry. As the voices shriek behind her, we see the obsessive fury overtake her as her face changes into battle-mode. Witherspoon plays her go-getter role with the perfectionist touch of her character. She sees only greatness for herself, and everyone else in her life is either a stepping stone or an impediment. To be able to convey this without ever uttering a line that would hint at this is a remarkable feat. Klein also does the naive Paul character justice. In a painfully sweet scene, he walks into the voting booth and is suddenly conflicted about which name he should mark down for president. He just doesn't feel right voting for himself.

Because the angst and torment and ambition and tragedy all orbit around a high school election, the unraveling of the lives of some of the characters becomes more funny than sad. Tracy's obsessive behavior is only matched by Mr. McAllister's growing obsession with repressing his obsessions, until everything melts down in a climax that seems all too real with a following epilogue that is all too perfect. Who knew that the forces of good versus evil could place the balance of humanity in one high school election? Wait, does it sound like we're taking it too seriously? Well, I guess the film hits us right in the soft spot.