Miss Sloane

The topic of corrupt lobbyists couldn't be timelier. Ruthless Elizabeth Sloane (Jessica Chastain) is one of Washington D.C.'s most powerful power brokers. As her story begins, she's being interrogated by a senior senator (John Lithgow) about ethical misconduct, after which the film flashes back to reveal what landed her in this situation. For an Indonesian client, Sloane successfully turned a play-for-pay politician's research trip into the vote that doomed a proposed import tariff on palm oil—the “Nutella tax.” And then she inexplicably flips her stance on a gun control bill, and impulsively quits her job working for NRA-supporter George Dupont (Sam Waterston) to join a fledgling boutique firm that is pushing for universal background checks for firearms purchases. To the delight of her idealistic new boss (Mark Strong), Elizabeth brings most of her young staff with her, except reluctant Jane Molloy (Alison Pill), who refuses to be poached. Wheeling and dealing on Capitol Hill, Elizabeth eschews a personal life, preferring to hire a hunky escort (Jake Lacy) to satisfy her sexual needs. Determined to win at all costs, Elizabeth naturally eventually crosses the line. Novice screenwriter Jonathan Perera crams far too much talky confusion into filmmaker John Madden's cautionary tale, which ultimately becomes convoluted and contrived. Still, this should be considered a strong optional purchase. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include a “Lobbying: Winning By Any Means” behind-the-scenes featurette (11 min.). Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are bonus DVD and digital copies of the film. Bottom line: a small extras package for an uneven drama.] (S. Granger)