I only saw this old drama more than ten years after its launch. It is worthy of being a classic. As a political drama, it is not boring. On the contrary, most of the dialogues are quite humorous, and the plot of each episode is compact and full of warmth. Totally two styles. Although the age is old and the picture quality is not good (after all, when the first season started shooting, it was still the era of BP machines, and even mobile phones were not popular), but it does not affect its high level and far-reaching impact.
The characters in the play have distinct personalities. Leo, as the chief of staff, and Josh, Sam, Toby, CJ and other senior staff, often quarrel over various affairs, but get along like family. Work is almost the whole of their lives, except for going home late at night to sleep, they spend almost every day at White House. Not only these senior staff, but their assistants are also full of witty words, especially the subtle chemical reaction between Josh and Donna, which I never tire of watching.
At first, I was attracted by the dialogue, especially remember Donna and Josh's I want my money back (Donna needed a few hundred dollars to buy a DVD player, so she was trying to persuade Josh to agree to someone who would use the remaining money as a tax refund or something. The proposal to return it to the taxpayer, my memory is a bit blurry, maybe this is the case, btw after all, it was not yet in the new millennium, and a DVD player was still very expensive), I thought Donna was really cute at that time. Although the speed of speech is fast, the high-level humor is really unstoppable. And many dialogues will have one or two rhymes, plus the rhythm, it is easy to give people the illusion of listening to cross talk. For example, in this paragraph, CJ asked Sam about Census:
Sam: You don't understand the census? (You don't understand the census?)
CJ: I don't understand certain nuances.
Sam: like what?
CJ: like the census.
Successive census and nuances reinforce the rhythm and sense of humor in the dialogue. Just reading the script or lines may not feel too strong. After all, the artistic effect is inseparable from the actor's acting skills and shooting techniques. My translation may not be appropriate, but I have to say that Sorkin's dialogue is indeed carefully considered. very exciting.
In addition to the humor, another attractive aspect is probably the warmth between the people in the play. Leo treats Josh CJ almost like their own children. As long as I have a job, you have a job, Leo told Josh when he was suffering from PTSD after a shooting.
And these staff's loyalty to Leo goes beyond the boss. In the first season, when the news that Leo entered the rehab due to alcoholism and drug abuse a few years ago was leaked by reporters, all the staff ignored Leo's objections and tried their best to protect him.
But what impresses me most is that when things subsided, Leo offered to meet the reporter who leaked it, when she had been fired and was about to leave with a suitcase in her hand.
Leo asked her: How did it feel when you first learned that I have this history?
The young female reporter said: "My father was also an alcoholic.
Leo: So did my father. In fact, he died of alcoholism. One day he came home drunk and I heard my mom and him arguing loudly and then I heard him go downstairs to the garage and heard a gunshot and he shot himself.
Reporter: Is that why you drink heavily?
Leo: No. I drink heavily because I am alcoholic. But I haven't had a glass of wine or a pill in six years.
Reporter: Six years later, are you still not allowed to drink a glass of wine?
Leo: No, the problem is I don't want one drink, I want ten.
Reporter: Is it that serious? I don't understand.
Leo: It's okay, almost no one understands.
Leo: You haven't answered my question, how did you feel when you first heard about my history?
Reporter: My father was an alcoholic...you have such an important job, so many important decisions to make every day, so many jobs and decisions I can't even imagine...
Leo: What you did, caused a lot of trouble for me, for the president, for the administration, but I would say, what you did was kind of brave.
Leo: Do you like working in the White House?
Reporter: Nod.
Leo: Then why don't you drop your suitcase and we all give each other another chance?
Reporter: okay
Leo: okay
I especially like this dialogue, I have read it several times, it is very warm. Of course, it may also be related to personal life. It is true that work is not going well in the epidemic environment. The PM took the initiative to help me a lot without my knowledge, so I saw that I was almost fired and was rescued by my boss. The plot is inevitable.
In addition, I have to say that I really like the seemingly non-existent relationship between Josh and Donna. At the end of season five, when Josh learned at the White House that their car had exploded in the Middle East, Donna's first reaction was. He put down everything in his hand and flew to Germany to see her for the first time, but he was already incoherent when facing the doctor. And after Donna was pushed into the operating room, under extreme fear, what she wanted to see was Josh, and she wrote it down on the paper, scared scared. (Although office romance is not worth promoting, and these two are not strictly office romances, after all, they have not confessed to the sixth season). In the first few seasons, it felt like these two were bickering every day, and they finally got together in the seventh season.
Finally, every season comes to an end, and the filming and soundtrack are great. At the end of the second season, when it was announced that Bartlet was suffering from MS, on the way to the press conference, the Brothers in arms soundtrack, and the storm of the night, matched well. The camera changes in the press conference and in the President's car in the rain, which has a movie-like sense of sight.
In short, although it is not a new drama, and it is not as popular as Friends of the House of Cards, not many people watch it, but it is indeed worth recommending.
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