Movie · 2025 · Comedy, Drama · 1h 55m · PG-13 · English
Curator score: 0.7/10 (53.3K ratings)
A story about the people you love, and how to survive them.
Overview
An idealistic young politician juggles familial issues and a challenging work life while preparing to take over the job of her mentor, the state’s longtime incumbent governor.
Ratings
Curator score: 0.7/10
IMDb: 5.1/10
Letterboxd: 2.45/5
Metacritic: 39
TMDB: 5.5/10
Director
James L. Brooks
Production
20th Century Studios, Gracie Films, TSG Entertainment
Cast
Emma Mackey, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jack Lowden, Kumail Nanjiani, Spike Fearn, Julie Kavner, Rebecca Hall, Ayo Edebiri, Albert Brooks, Woody Harrelson, Joseph Brooks, Lincoln Whitty, Kellen Raffaelo, Becky Ann Baker, Kathleen Choe, Joseph Giles, Tracey Ullman, Gary Tanguay, Shawn Fitzgibbon, Michael Steven Costello
Where to watch
Hulu
Curator Review
Verdict
A well-meaning political-family dramedy with a polished cast and a few appealing Brooksian rhythms, but the consensus suggests it feels dated, overearnest, and dramatically thin. If you like sincere, talky, old-school liberal comedy-drama, there may be enough charm to sample; otherwise it sounds more frustrating than rewarding.
Best for
Viewers who enjoy earnest political dramedies
Fans of James L. Brooks’s warm, dialogue-heavy style
People who don’t mind sentimental, old-fashioned storytelling
Skip if
You want sharp political satire
You’re allergic to sentimentality and speeches
You prefer contemporary pacing and a more modern point of view
Overview
Ella McCay aims for the kind of humane, character-first comedy-drama James L. Brooks has built a career on: smart people, messy families, and civic ideals colliding in public and private. The setup has a clean hook, and the cast sounds game, but the response points to a film that leans hard on sincerity without earning enough complexity around it.
Worth noting
What emerges is less a biting political portrait than a nostalgic fantasy of decent governance and emotional repair. That can be comforting if you’re in the mood for a soft-focus, dialogue-driven ensemble piece, but it also seems to leave the movie exposed as out of step with the moment it’s trying to speak to.
Bottom line
The strongest appeal here is likely tonal rather than dramatic: a few funny, observant exchanges, a capable lead, and the familiar Brooks interest in people trying to do the right thing imperfectly. But for many viewers, the movie’s earnestness and retro worldview will feel more quaint than moving.
Top Letterboxd reviews
zoë rose bryant (4★) · 2117 likes
i’m a neurotic brunette who can’t help but see the best in people of course i ate this up
Jake (1.5★) · 1979 likes
Baffling. 50% of all scenes end with characters earnestly saying "i love you" to each other. Set during 2008 for no discernible reason. Emma Mackey's performance like a parody of 1930s Capra. This should've been a novel. The man who made Broadcast News and Terms of Endearment so beyond out of touch at 85 sitting on a fortune from the Simpsons, writing a story about Leslie Knope doing good things in a flawed but redeemable political system. Every scene insists… more Baffling. 50% of all scenes end with characters earnestly saying "i love you" to each other. Set during 2008 for no discernible reason. Emma Mackey's performance like a parody of 1930s Capra. This should've been a novel. The man who made Broadcast News and Terms of Endearment so beyond out of touch at 85 sitting on a fortune from the Simpsons, writing a story about Leslie Knope doing good things in a flawed but redeemable political system. Every scene insists… more
vivdagoat 🍎🍂🐞 (3★) · 1839 likes
anxious agoraphobic son or girlboss governor daughter
Matt Minton (2★) · 1468 likes
I love how they had to set this over 15 years ago to incorporate an uplifting message about U.S. politics
cerys (2★) · 1146 likes
my ella mccay headcannon is that they never specify which state she was born in because they’re trying to hide the fact that she’s a republican. she definitely isn’t btw
1999 · Comedy, Drama · 1h 43m · R · Curator 7.8/10 (309.8K ratings) · Where to watch: fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, MGM Plus, Philo
If you want politics with more bite, irony, and a clearer sense of institutional absurdity.