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The Candidate

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03:02

The Candidate

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• Drama
• Comedy

• 1972
• Michael Ritchie
• 105 mins
• PG

Summary

Political drama starring Robert Redford and Peter Boyle. An idealistic young lawyer, whose father was a former governor of California, is persuaded to run for the Senate, but only on the condition that he is not forced to toe the party line.

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Review

A star rating of 4 out of 5.

Tom Hutchinson

Robert Redford's engaging performance here breathes fresh life into the all-power-corrupts theme, and the sharply observed situations won an Oscar for scriptwriter Jeremy Larner. Striving "to do an Abe Lincoln", Redford plays the idealistic lawyer who succumbs to mass-merchandising politics when he sets out to be a senator, alienating his wife (Karen Carlson) and compromising his principles with a campaign engineered by party managers Peter Boyle and Allen Garfield. Director Michael Ritchie and Redford made the skiing exposé Downhill Racer in 1969, and the word "downhill" could apply to the morality in this movie, which Ritchie - interspersing contemporary political events with fiction - gives a documentary-like credibility.

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7.0/10

How to watch

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Streaming

• Sky Store

Credits

Cast

rolenameBill McKayRobert RedfordMarvin LucasPeter BoyleSenator "Crocker" JarmonDon PorterHoward KleinAllen GarfieldNancy McKayKaren CarlsonRich JenkinQuinn RedekerWally HendersonMorgan UptonPaul CorlissMichael LernerStarkeyKenneth TobeyJohn J McKayMelvyn DouglasDavidChris PreyNeil AtkinsonJoe MiksakLynnJenny SullivanPilotTom DahlgrenStationmasterGerald HikenMabelLeslie Allen

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Crew

rolenameDirectorMichael Ritchie

Details

Theatrical distributor

Columbia-Warner Dists

Languages

English | Spanish

Guidance

Contains swearing.

Available on

video and DVD

Formats

Colour

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