Patrick D’s review published on Letterboxd:
We see two Donald Trumps in The Apprentice. In the first half, he’s a silver spoon kid beginning to break into New York’s most elite stratosphere. He still balks at obvious misdeeds, and doesn’t quite know how to commit his own in pursuit of the wealth and status he so badly covets. He learns how to be bad from Roy Cohn, a closeted big shot right-wing lawyer with a penchant for head bobbing. We watch Trump watch Cohn as he blackmails powerful people standing in their way. It’s entertaining, especially Jeremy Strong’s performance, but Sebastian Stan’s “early Trump” isn’t very interesting to observe. His character is more of an empty vessel waiting to be filled with the toxins he’s now famous for, and that’s not the fault of the screenwriters, but just the reality of spending time with Trump. He’s a soulless brat with severe insecurities about his physical appearance. We all know this. What else is there to say?
The biggest flaw of the film is that Trump’s transformation into full blown villain happens off screen. The second half of the movie is ushered in with some montages and a news segment about Ronald Reagan, then Trump appears, no longer hovering behind Roy Cohn, but strutting around spinning to the media and facing off with Ed Koch as he unveils his plans for Trump Tower. Somewhere between the 1970s and 80s Trump put Cohn’s advice to use to become this monster, but we don’t really see the process. For a film seeking to provide an origin story for our most notorious boogeyman, we’re not given much insight. If there’s no insight to provide, is it a story worth telling?
Patrick D liked this review
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