The Congressman

A gently satirical if also somewhat tepid tale, The Congressman centers on a disillusioned Maine politician who is coping with a public relations fiasco while undergoing a mid-life crisis. A recently divorced Vietnam vet with a drinking problem, U.S. Congressman Charlie Winship (Treat Williams) often puts his feet up on his desk while remaining seated during the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance on the House floor each morning. One day, he's surreptitiously caught on video, igniting a nasty media-driven controversy that is only amplified when—facing a demonstration by his constituents—Charlie explains that the Pledge was created not by the Founding Fathers, but rather a socialist Christian minister named Francis Bellamy in 1892. To complicate matters, Charlie's ambitious chief of staff, Jared Barnes (Ryan Merriman), is secretly collaborating with a conniving lobbyist (George Hamilton) to usurp Charlie's job. Meanwhile, back in Maine a crisis looms as the livelihood of a remote fishing community on Catatonk Island is threatened by corporate fisheries. Visiting the beleaguered area, Charlie is befriended by local librarian Rae Blanchard (Elizabeth Marvel). Writer/co-director (along with Jared Martin) Robert Mrazek draws here from his own experience representing a Long Island, NY, congressional district for a decade before retiring from the House of Representatives in 1993. Unfortunately, this is a lackluster effort, overall, which suffers from formulaic plotting and stilted dialogue. Optional. (S. Granger)