Mayor Frank Skeffington (Spencer Tracy) is an aging politician trying to win his fifth term during a changing times against newcomer Kevin McCluskey. He invites his nephew Adam Caulfield (Jeffrey Hunter) to join his campaign despite opposition from Adam's in-laws.
It's a mistake to not see McCluskey until after an hour. It's a bigger mistake to make him look silly. The point should be that he's a JFK type who has all the visual charms of the modern TV politician. It's a put down of the new college kids and makes this less compelling. The best hope of this movie lies in making this speak. What it's saying is that an old rogue like Skeffington is being pushed out by the new generation of silliness prone to corruption. It could have been a great conflict between idealism and pragmatism. That's not this movie. The light silly tone lessens the insightfulness of the rest of the movie. Nevertheless, it's great to see Spencer Tracy go all out with his character. It's a very impressive performance. I almost wish not to have McCluskey in the movie. It would work better with him as a faceless name.
It's a mistake to not see McCluskey until after an hour. It's a bigger mistake to make him look silly. The point should be that he's a JFK type who has all the visual charms of the modern TV politician. It's a put down of the new college kids and makes this less compelling. The best hope of this movie lies in making this speak. What it's saying is that an old rogue like Skeffington is being pushed out by the new generation of silliness prone to corruption. It could have been a great conflict between idealism and pragmatism. That's not this movie. The light silly tone lessens the insightfulness of the rest of the movie. Nevertheless, it's great to see Spencer Tracy go all out with his character. It's a very impressive performance. I almost wish not to have McCluskey in the movie. It would work better with him as a faceless name.