BFI London Film Festival: The Times Gala - W. October 23, 2008

Oliver Stone's take on the story of the one time black sheep of the Bush family and his rise to become leader of the Free World.

Oliver Stone is no stranger to making films about powerful figures – Richard Nixon, JFK and Fidel Castro, to name three. He's also not unused to making films that stir up controversy, and for all his insistence that W. is 'a fair, true portrait' of the current President of the United States, with the US release and international roll out set just before the forthcoming election, the anticipation couldn't be higher. Stone sees Dub-ya's rise to power as a great, almost Capraesque story: how did a one time reprobate and black sheep of his esteemed family rise to become Leader of the Free World? W. shifts back and forth between Bush's hard partying younger years and his first term in office, showing the highs of his rise to power but also giving ample airing of the lows.

Even when he found God and transformed his life, as Stone would have it, Bush still struggled to escape the long shadow of his father. The formidable task of playing him falls to Josh Brolin, continuing his excellent run of notable performances (No Country for Old Men, In the Valley of Elah), and Stone has assembled an impressive cast around him, including Thandie Newton as 'Guru' Condoleezza Rice, Elizabeth Banks as Laura Bush, Scott Glenn as Donald Rumsfeld and Richard Dreyfuss as Dick Cheney. From a script by Wall Street co-writer Stanley Weiser, W. will indisputably be one of the most talked about films of the year. We're delighted to present its European Premiere.
Sandra Hebron