The movie Game Change is the story of Senator John McCain’s campaign for the Presidency of the United States told from the moment he decided to ask Sarah Palin to be his Vice Presidential running mate. This movie is everything you think it is…

Story: This film was apparently adapted from a book of the same name written by journalists Mark Halperin and John Heilemann. The book, in its entirety, covers the whole campaign; The movie only covers the chapters from the time Palin is selected to the end of the campaign.

Nothing about this movie is a surprise to me. Everything you see here is what I thought when it was happening. I knew she was the wrong pick as soon as it was announced. Inside knowledge tells me that the marriage between the story as written by Halperin and Heilemann and the screenwriter is as accurate as it gets. Sad, but true.

Performances: First and foremost, Julianne Moore as Sarah Palin is spot-on. Just as the parody version of Sarah Palin by Tina Fey is spot-on. And they even used clips from Tina Fey’s portrayals in the movie. It’s no wonder Julianne Moore was nominated for a Golden Globe. Of particular note: She had Palin’s accent and manner of speaking mastered.

I’m not sure I buy Ed Harris as John McCain though. He seems a bit too reasonable. The interviews and speeches I’ve seen McCain do… I perceive him to be a bit rigid and narrow-minded. He wasn’t necessarily portrayed that way in this film. Hmmm…

The other supporting characters are pretty good portrayals – or so I’m told…

Visual: So, I don’t buy Ed Harris as John McCain in performance, but, the makeup artists nailed his looks. And again, Julianne Moore really looks the part for Palin. Casting did a great job with all of the characters and they capture the entire look of a working campaign. No special effects or big electronic scenes – just people being people. Just the way I like it…

Rating: Game Change gets an A from me. Mostly because I feel validated. During political elections, everyone’s got an opinion and everyone thinks they’re right. It’s nice to know that the people who were sure McCain and Palin were going to win were exactly as wrong as I knew they were and for the exact reasons I knew they were wrong. How embarrassing…

See this only if you’re into politics. Otherwise, it doesn’t have much meaning. Or if you think Sarah Palin is a whack-job. You’ll feel validated too…