The Apprentice Review: Sebastian Stan’s Donald Trump Drama Is A Chilling Yet Slightly Uneven Feature

There’s probably no easy way to make a film about Donald Trump, as no matter your opinion on the man, balance is key in attempting to speak to a wider audience. Viewers and critics alike should keep that in mind when watching director Ali Abbasi’s The Apprentice, as the drama depicting the New York real estate mogul’s rise to power in the 1980s manages to actually stick that particular landing. While it doesn’t go as hard as some would like, it also doesn’t shy away from portraying events that have been entered into historical record. Though this results in powerful performances, it's in the service of a storyline that comes off as slightly unfocused.

Throughout the events of The Apprentice, we see Donald Trump (Sebastian Stan) go from a rich upstart in late 1970s New York City to a man about to co-write The Art of the Deal in the mid-’80s. That ascension is paired with the descent of infamous lawyer Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong), as the hot button political figure lends his assistance towards making sure his client learns the lessons he needs to rise to the top.

By way of that description, you could technically consider this picture another version of A Star is Born. Of course, what separates The Apprentice from its more fiction-based counterpart is that it depicts actual people and events – and it’s through that exercise that this film manages to be a potentially compelling watch for supporters and detractors alike.

The Apprentice isn’t a hit piece on Donald Trump but an origin story of how he became the man he is today.

Part of the difficulty in making a movie depicting the Trump mythos is that there’s quite a bit of history one could go over, with some of the more modern source material being the most tempting to employ. As The Apprentice chooses to hone in on the origins of the former president's role as a power broker in Manhattan, there's a more rigid window at work, which mostly solidifies the plot. The decision to limit the main thread of The Apprentice’s story to Cohn’s fall and Trump's rise is effectively implemented in serving the story, and it helps director Ali Abbasi and writer Gabriel Sherman’s combined abilities, as neither contributor goes out of their way to either demonize or lionize either of these men.

It’s a decision that’ll surely disappoint those hoping for either an incendiary political statement or a puff piece that soft pedals events. Though in the long run, it's the safest path that this project could have travelled, so as not to court too much controversy from either side of the political aisle.

Employing period appropriate film stocks and the acting skills of both Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong, a great transition is depicted in The Apprentice – one that’s still felt in New York City to this day. As we move forward from a visual palette that invokes feelings of a docudrama in the making into one that represents the TV-ready VHS sheen the story ends with, this dark passing of the torch is reinforced in an artistically understated manner.

Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong’s powerful, but poignant, performances anchor the slightly unfocused drama.

With the current sociopolitical climate being what it is, some may think that The Apprentice would employ an approach that reflects a straightforward history lesson, with just enough style to make it watchable. This is where separating the picture from the current era of Donald Trump’s legacy makes further sense, as there’s license to infuse the work with elements of humorous foreshadowing and foreboding horror.

Images of debauchery with bleeding red tones are shown alongside pristinely staged interviews, helping design a complex tone. The central performances from the movie’s leading talent also go a long way in that respect, as Sebastian Stan’s weight gain and vocal coaching serve to not just offer a mere caricature of Donald Trump. Observing his progression through the eras shown in this tale, the MCU veteran’s acting chops continue to make a lasting impression of Stan as a stoic and transformative professional who opts for subtlety over flash.

That approach leaves Jeremy Strong with plenty of room to start his portrayal of Roy Cohn in a more flashy manner befitting of where the man happened to be in his life at the beginning of the story. Starting the prosecutorial boogeyman at the height of his powers, The Apprentice eventually sees Strong dialing down the energy as Cohn’s deterioration progresses. With the simultaneous rise and fall of these two men, balance once more makes itself known in the storytelling equation.

For a saga that’s mostly interested in the mentor/mentee relationship that holds court in its execution, The Apprentice seems to stumble just a little bit in its earlier acts. The inclusion of Ivana Trump (Maria Bakalova) leaves a feeling of shaggy and tangential storytelling, despite the actor offering a turn as effective as her male counterparts. While Bakalova shines in key moments, such as a third act exchange with Jeremy Strong at Mar-a-Lago, the inclusion of this thread mostly seems to serve the inclusion of a scene of sexual assault.

That moment isn’t a gratuitous addition, as it’s intended to show how Donald Trump has changed since The Apprentice’s introduction. That being said, the courtship and eventual souring of Donald and Ivana’s relationship doesn’t feel as strong a thread as that of Roy Cohn supplanting Trump’s own family as a moral compass.

The Apprentice isn’t going to change anyone’s minds on Donald Trump, but it does make for compelling viewing.

By the time composer Martin Dirkov’s synth laden score helps bring The Apprentice to a close, you know that the film isn’t going to change anyone’s minds on Donald Trump. That’s not the overall purpose of Ali Abassi’s picture, as it ultimately uses historical record as its inspiration. As far as intent goes, all that’s meant to be seen is the Trumpian rise to power, and Roy Cohn’s role in making it happen.

When this story sticks to that lane, it’s at its strongest, as it depicts two of the most controversial figures in history in moments of notable vulnerability. Those snapshots aren’t fashioned to garner sympathy, as they fit the plot line involving Trump and Cohn in transition. In its own way, The Apprentice is a compelling tragedy that also mashes up the ‘80s style ambition of Scarface with the creation myth of Frankenstein. Albeit, as anyone who's lived through the past eight years will tell you, it has a very different ending.

The Apprentice isn’t a merely reactionary tale meant to be a “sign of our times.” It acts as a firm handed indictment of the man who wanted the world, and the mentor who fueled his ambitions. You can call it a warning or a celebration if you look at it the right way, but that call is left for the viewer to decide, with history as the evidence.