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HBO Recounts The 2000 Election
Associated Press file photo (2000)
Broward County canvassing board member Judge Robert Rosenberg trains a magnifying glass on a disputed ballot.
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Published: May 12, 2008
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It's not a horror movie, although it is Hollywood spin. But to many Floridians, HBO's homage to the 2000 presidential vote-counting debacle will be a cringe-inducing look back at democracy in action in their home state - and it might prompt questions on whether, in this election year, it could happen again.
The flick, debuting May 25, is billed as a behind-the-scenes ride inside the controversial recount that landed George W. Bush in the White House over Al Gore.
The movie opens with voters on Election Day 2000 confused about which hole to punch because of the ballot's two-page "butterfly" design. The plot, mixing fact with fiction, winds through 36 days of drama, ending with the Supreme Court stopping the recount.
HBO says the film is a look at "larger than life personalities" and the "human drama of characters involved in the chain of events that would determine the leadership of the country."
Laura Dern as Katherine Harris
The actress known for her roles in "Blue Velvet" and "Jurassic Park" takes on the role of the oft-lampooned former Florida secretary of state who tried to call the state's presidential primary for Bush. Her portrayal comes complete with the eye-popping wardrobes and makeup that helped Harris get the most out the intense national exposure she seemed to savor. Harris went on to be elected to two terms in Congress but then lost a 2006 bid to unseat Florida's Democratic senator, Bill Nelson.
John Hurt as Warren Christopher
Hurt got a Best Actor Oscar nomination for "The Elephant Man," a guy who occasionally had to play docile to avoid being beaten up by bullies. But in portraying former Secretary of State Christopher, who supervised Gore's team in Florida, Hurt shows someone who really was - at least in this matter - too often hesitant and overly diplomatic. Christopher returned to California, where he remains a senior partner at a Los Angeles area law firm.
Tom Wilkinson as James Baker III
Wilkinson seems to be everywhere nowadays, portraying Benjamin Adams in the recent HBO miniseries "John Adams" and getting an Oscar nomination as a lawyer-gone-awry in "Michael Clayton." Baker, the chief legal adviser for Bush's campaign, is portrayed as a political brawler whose loud and frequent message to the media was that Bush had won in Florida, clear and simple. Behind closed doors, however, Baker fretted over what would happen if the Supreme Court did not intervene to stop the recount. Today, Baker is a senior partner in a law firm.
Matt Miller as Gov. Jeb Bush
Miller's list of screen credits is not long, and his personal blog details struggles to land parts in films, TV shows and ads, and industrial videos. But he is a ringer for President Bush's little brother. "Even though it's small, I am still very excited. Every job is a huge victory!" Miller wrote when he landed the bit role, requiring just one day of shooting. On Election Eve 2000, George Bush famously told Gore his governor-brother had advised that the networks were correctly calling Florida for him. "Your little brother," Gore replied prophetically, "is not the ultimate authority on this." Jeb Bush left office Jan. 2, 2007, because of term limits.
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Reader Comments
Posted by ( DWNinTPA ) on May 12, 2008 at 12:53 a.m. ( Suggest removal )
OK, let's re-hash the past... obviously the Dem's didn't learn just HOW important Florida IS!
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Posted by ( jac ) on May 12, 2008 at 7:13 a.m. ( Suggest removal )
Become a superdelegate in Florida would be the only way to be counted if you are a democrat.
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Posted by ( dalatorr ) on May 12, 2008 at 10:45 a.m. ( Suggest removal )
I love the picture of the guy with the magnifying glass, trying to see the mark - any mark - where the other two people saw a definite indication for Al Gore. I know the movie won't show it, but there were so many times when there was NOTHING on the punch card, and the first two people said "Gore" and the third guy is like, what the heck are they looking at? I don't see anything.
Bottom line, with Kevin Spacey attached and Bush's low approval ratings, you can guess that this is going to be Hollywood's version of what they thought happened, and it will not resemble the truth. But I was here and I watched it all, and I will never forget what I saw: people trying to steal an election in broad daylight.
The best part is, this is going to come out right before a huge nomination fight at the democratic convention, and a lot of folks will see that and think, hmmm... these folks just kinda make things up as they go along, the heck with the rules or the law or how the actual votes went. And a lot of Americans will decide the the DNC is full of scheming scumbags.
I'll watch, but I doubt a lot of other people will.
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Posted by ( Hothead ) on May 12, 2008 at 12:20 p.m. ( Suggest removal )
Yes,Dalatorr, people did try to steal the election in broad daylight, and when that didn't work the 'supreme' court thwarted the Constitution and appointed the boy king. Your hatred of the democratic process is disturbing, and your blanket statement that the party that represents countless millions of Americans are "scumbags' speaks volumes to your fetid predjudices. We were was there too.
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