NETWORK: HBO
AIR DATE: May 25, 2008
STARRING: Kevin Spacey, John Hurt, Laura Dern, Tom Wilkinson, Denis Leary, Ed Begley Jr., and Bob Balaban
WRITTEN BY: Danny Strong
DIRECTED BY: Jay Roach

"By tomorrow morning, the stains of Bill Clinton will be washed away, and honor and dignity will be restored to The White House."

Those words, said shortly after all the networks called Florida for Al Gore in November 2000, proved to be tragically wrong. What might have happened if a few things had gone differently on one of the most fateful days in American history will be theorized about and debated for centuries to come. That's how important the last two terms have been and one can only wonder how Al Gore would have approached 9/11, Iraq, Iran, gas prices, the recession, and all the other issues that have turned George W. Bush into the least popular President in history. But that's not what Recount is about. Leaving the politics of what happened after Bush took office aside, HBO's Recount is about those few amazing weeks when we had no idea who the President of the United States would be even after the people had spoken. It's clearly a little liberally biased in its presentation, but, almost surprisingly, not to a fault. The movie (like the election in my opinion) is practically stolen by the Republicans and the idea that the legal process was seen through to its inevitable conclusion is given fair play. I guess what I'm trying to say is, no matter what your political affiliation, there's reason to love Recount, a film that would be my number one of 2008 had it been released in theaters. It's that good. Don't miss it.

Recount starts on Election Day 2000, quickly introducing us to several of the major players in the drama that would follow in Florida and Washington. Gore and Bush are minor players in this affair, seen only briefly and either in shadow or from behind, unless it's historical footage. Recount is about the people in the trenches in the days after the election, not only trying to get their individual candidates across the finish line of an amazing race but to wrap their heads around a situation that was never even imagined much less prepared for courtroom battle. On the Democratic side of the ledger, Kevin Spacey plays Ron Klain, Gore's former Chief of Staff and the man who took the bull by the horns in Florida, Ed Begley Jr. plays David Boies, the man who presented the case in front of the Supreme Court, John Hurt plays Warren Christopher, and Denis Leary brilliantly embodies Michael Whouley. The Republicans couldn't possibly be better cast with Tom Wilkinson taking the role of James Baker III, Bob Balaban playing Ben Ginsberg, and Laura Dern turning Katherine Harris into much more than the caricature that lesser actresses would have with this infamous role.

The biggest compliment I can pay Recount is, being an avid political follower, I knew almost all of the details presented in Recount and, of course, we all know how it ends, but it is riveting for a complete two hours. In fact, I wish it had been longer. Danny Strong, who stole scenes as Jonathan on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, makes his screenwriting debut with Recount and it's a stunning piece of work. The cast is great and we'll get to that later but Strong's screenplay will be the underrated element of Recount and it deserves a lot of the credit for why this project works. Taking all of the details of hanging chad and courtroom battles and turning them into fascinating, character-driven entertainment is not an easy task. It's very reminiscent of Aaron Sorkin's work on West Wing and Studio 60 - a discussion about what a chad is (and the fact that the plural of chad is chad with no 's') is hilarious - but with none of the pretension that sometimes mars Sorkin's work. Strong's screenplay is the writing debut of the year, theatrical or television. Of course, director Jay Roach, proving he can handle something other than the Austin Powers movies, deserves credit for not overplaying the material and bringing the best out of this talented group of actors.

When it comes to the ensemble, everyone in Recount is near or at the top of their game. HBO should truly rule the day at this year's Emmys with John Adams and this film both deserving multiple nods. (Bernard and Dorris will probably be in there too.) Kevin Spacey has become a bit cheesy on-screen in recent years but he fully reins in Ron Klain, never overplaying like he's been prone to do. It reminds you how incredibly good he can be when he plays it subtle. It's his best work since American Beauty. He'll surely be nominated and Leary and Wilkinson should be right along with him. And you can give the Supporting Actress award to Dern now, one of my favorite actresses who hasn't been this good in years.

It's been a very weak year at the theater and HBO has struggled in recent years with their new series and even some of their movies and mini-series, and yet when I think of what has been the most entertaining and well-made this year, it's John Adams and Recount. Maybe they should change their slogan - "It's not movies, it's HBO."