• Pop Culture
    • Movies
    • Television
    • Comic Books
    • Video Games
    • Toys & Collectibles
  • Features
    • News
    • Reviews
    • Articles and Opinions
    • Interviews
    • Exclusives
    • FMTV
  • Socials
    • YouTube
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • Flipboard
  • About
    • About Flickering Myth
    • Write for Flickering Myth
    • Advertise on Flickering Myth
  • Terms
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy

Flickering Myth

Geek Culture | Movies, TV, Comic Books & Video Games

  • TRENDING TOPICS:
  • Star Wars
  • Marvel
  • DC
  • Physical Media
  • Write for Us

Movie Review – The Program (2015)

October 15, 2015 by Gary Collinson

The Program, 2015.

Directed by Stephen Frears.
Starring Ben Foster, Chris O’Dowd, Guillaume Canet, Jesse Plemons, Lee Pace, Denis Menochet and Dustin Hoffman.

SYNOPSIS:

An Irish sports journalist becomes convinced that Lance Armstrong’s performances during the Tour de France victories are fueled by banned substances. With this conviction, he starts hunting for evidence that will expose Armstrong.

Maybe forty minutes into The Program, Lance Armstrong declares to his teammates that Hollywood are to finally document his life with Jake Gyllenhaal-hot off the back of Brokeback Mountain-taking on the lead role, “did you see Donnie Darko, he rode a bike in that, he’s perfect.” If that film ever went into production, it may have felt eerily similar to this sporadically brave, more often insipid retelling of a far better film.

Any questions previous proposed in the far superior, far more personal The Armstrong Lie, are swept under the rug in place of a circle jerk, with Armstrong looming heavy in the background, awaiting a mutual climax in the hope they finish with the image of him, gurning as he pulls on the yellow jersey.

It may be that director Stephen Frears treats the topic with too much restraint, a respect Armstrong doesn’t deserve. Even at his absolute worst, there’s a feeling Frears is attempting to humanise Armstrong, showing his insecurities as something universal. This in part is due to the films poor pacing, feeling less like a dramatic retelling, and more a two hour long prologue, a two hour long joke with a two minute punch line.

Credit however where credit’s due to the ever impressive Ben Foster who pumps himself up, snarling at his cancer, snarling at his defectors, snarling at the audience at any given moment. In lesser hands, his performance could have been a thinly veiled caricature, but Foster is at the absolute top of his game. Chris O’Dowd, however impressive he may be-and he certainly tries his very hardest-is given a fairly unforgiving role. In being the moral compass he suffers from simply being a character of which exposition is his main personality trait.

A rather bizarre cameo from Dustin Hoffman during the film’s finale is little but a passing distraction, a shame as the film takes off during its final half hour. There’s a sense the audience is supposed to sympathise with Armstrong throughout, with his charisma and charm playing against our pre-conceived notion of him as the arch-villain of cycling. Its refreshing-although far too little too late-that the façade is pulled late on, showing Armstrong as a manipulative sociopath, although one with real belief that what he was doing had real meaning.

When at its best, The Program works as less of a sport biopic, more as a scathing attack on the ineptitude of the media and the doping boards that all but run the sport. Cinematographer Danny Cohen litters the film with Dutch angles, shooting with an infatuation for the sport and John Hodge’s script is impressively tight. It’s a technical achievement with a series of truly impressive performances, the film to finally make Ben Foster the star he so rightly deserves. It’s a shame however that the film chooses to simply state facts, dodging anything truly damning. A strong injection of steroids needs to be prescribed.

Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★

Thomas Harris

FacebookTwitterFlipboardRedditPinterestWhatsApp

Filed Under: Movies, Reviews, Thomas Harris Tagged With: Ben Foster, Chris O'Dowd, Denis Menochet and Dustin Hoffman, Guillaume Canet, jesse plemons, Lee Pace, Stephen Frears, The Program

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:

The Most Shocking Movies of the 1970s

Forgotten 2000s Comedies That Are Worth Revisiting

The Best UK Video Nasties Of All Time

The Must-See Horror Movies From Every Decade

Sirens from Space: Species and Under The Skin

The Most Overlooked Horror Movies of the 1990s

Tom Cruise vs. Keanu Reeves: Who will be 2023’s King of Action?

13 Underrated Horror Sequels That Deserve More Love

Forgotten Horror Movie Sequels You Never Need to See

The Most Iconic Cult Classics of All Time

FEATURED POSTS:

Terrible Remake Ideas: Past, Present, Future

Ten Essential Korean Cinema Gems

Robin of Sherwood: Still the quintessential take on the Robin Hood legend

Trending Now

  1. Kiefer Sutherland goes down the Rabbit Hole in trailer for Paramount+ spy series
  2. Orange Is the New Black: Ranking Every Season from Worst to Best
  3. Daniel Radcliffe says he no longer gets recognised by kids as being Harry Potter
  4. Milla Jovovich and Tom Hughes to star in Corto Maltese adaptation
  5. Arrow Video Frightfest 2019 Review – Dark Encounter
  6. Star Trek: Picard casts Annie Wersching as the Borg Queen
  • Pop Culture
    • Movies
    • Television
    • Comic Books
    • Video Games
    • Toys & Collectibles
  • Features
    • News
    • Reviews
    • Articles and Opinions
    • Interviews
    • Exclusives
    • FMTV
  • Socials
    • YouTube
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • Flipboard
  • About
    • About Flickering Myth
    • Write for Flickering Myth
    • Advertise on Flickering Myth
  • Terms
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy

© Flickering Myth Limited. All rights reserved. The reproduction, modification, distribution, or republication of the content without permission is strictly prohibited. Movie titles, images, etc. are registered trademarks / copyright their respective rights holders. Read our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. If you can read this, you don't need glasses.