The Campaign

Last night I saw The Campaign, starring Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis.

Cam Brady (Ferrell) is used to winning—he's been the congressman in a small North Carolina town for years and is running unopposed for another term.

Marty Huggins (Galifianakis) is the son of a prominent man who has always desired the approval of his father, though has no experience in politics.

The Motch Brothers (John Lithgow and Dan Aykroyd) want a puppet they can control (and develop Chinese sweatshops) to take power, so they move in and groom Marty to beat Cam.

Going into films like this, I'm often prepared to learn that the funniest scenes were in the trailer, but here I was pleasantly surprised. There was plenty of funny to go around.

Ferrell never goes into his signature George W. Bush impression (as I feared) and is just slimy enough to echo an actual candidate.

Galifianakis is sweet and consistent throughout—maintaining his effeminate mannerisms even after his team has "toughened" him up.

The supporting players are there just enough to let the two leads do their thing, and their thing is hilarious.

There is language and sex, but what was thankfully missing was bathroom humor. And perhaps that's why I liked it so much. At least two scenes had me in tears, I laughed so hard.

I love it when a comedy does that to me.

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