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The Apprentice tells the rise of a young real estate entrepreneur with great ambitions in New York City of the 70s and 80s.
The drama is based on true events and people, but the portrayal is fictionalized. While Ali Abbasi directed, the screenplay was written by Gabriel Sherman. The film was released in US cinemas on October 11th, 2024 and is available digitally since yesterday with a DVD and Blu-ray release planned for December 17th, 2024. The Apprentice begins with a speech by the 37th President of the United States Richard Nixon defending himself in the wake of the Watergate scandal at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida on November 17th, 1973. Meanwhile, the man who will go on to be the 45th US President and this year’s presidential candidate Donald Trump (Sebastian Stan) makes house calls in Trump Village in New York City to collect the rent and is greeted by a delusional gentleman and a pot full of hot water. Ten years later, Trump Tower opens on top of the ruins of the old Commodore Hotel on Fifth Avenue near Tiffany’s and close to the Empire State Building. The film follows the career of the son of the successful real estate entrepreneur Fred Trump (Martin Donovan), whose recognition he’ll never be able to earn, and in particular his relationship with Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong).
As Trump’s lawyer, Cohn is supposed to free the family from allegations that the landlords discriminate against black tenants in a legal dispute with the US government. Cohn always follows three rules that he passes down to Trump – in addition to a $1,100 merino wool suit -: “Attack, attack, attack.” “Admit nothing, deny everything.” “Never admit defeat.” Cohn makes a living by winning court cases at all costs, and he doesn’t shy away from threatening and intimidating public officials. Trump quickly adopts this approach in order to obtain financing and approval for the construction of his 58-story skyscraper in Manhattan, and in his obsession with his looks, including an addiction to diet pills and the plan to make Atlantic City the new gambling magnet, he slips further away from his mentor who fights his infection with AIDS. Other personalities appear from time to time, such as the political consultant Roger “Spin Doctor” Stone (Mark Rendall), Cosa Nostra boss Anthony “Fat Tony” Salerno (Joe Pingue) and the 105th mayor of New York City Ed Koch (Ian D. Clark ), while excerpts from speeches by US Presidents Nixon, Ford and Reagan are played in their original form.
An essential part of the film is the relationship between the brothers Donald and Fred Jr. While they joke with each other at the beginning of the film, the former airline pilot Fred Jr. tragically succumbs to his alcohol addiction, while his younger brother has little sympathy for him. Trump enters into a relationship with model Ivana Zelníčková (Maria Bakalova), whom he later marries and who is partly responsible for being the interior designer of Trump Tower. A controversial scene shows a sexual assault against his then wife. In the next scene, however, he celebrates the opening of another real estate project to contemporary music and the disturbing images hardly have any impact on the unfolding events whatsoever. Discrimination against minorities is repeatedly highlighted in the film, such as the stigmatization of homosexuals during the height of the AIDS pandemic, which made it impossible for Cohn to come out publicly and until the end of his life he had to maintain that he had liver cancer instead.
The Apprentice is always presented in a way suitable to the era in which the drama is currently set. The movie is presented in a 1.33:1 aspect radio and starts out looking like a 16mm film from the 70s and then halfway through takes on the analog style of an 80s VHS tape. Combined with the fantastic makeup, costumes and set design, and the contemporary soundtrack with songs by Baccara, The Consumers, George McCrae, KC & The Sunshine Band, Pet Shop Boys and New Order, the movie manages to capture the New York City of the 70s and 80s in an authentic way. Particular praise also goes to the cinematography and editors, which, in addition to the brillant performance of the actresses and actors (especially the lead trio Stan, Strong and Bakalova), contribute significantly to the motivation to continue watching, even if the protagonist becomes noticeably more powerful and equally unlikable. The score by Martin Dirkov, David Holmes and Brian Irvine, characterized by synthesizers, guitar riffs and broad drums, sounds like a mixture of Tangerine Dreams’ GTA V, David Julyan’s Memento and Giorgio Moroder’s Scarface scores.
Conclusion
The Apprentice impressively and authentically depicts 70s/80s New York City and tells the origin story of a young real estate entrepreneur with great ambitions. The portrayal sometimes feels just like Ivana describes Trump during their first encounter: stereotypical, e.g. when Sebastian Stan, in the role of Trump, repeatedly pulls an exaggerated-looking pout during vital plot moments. Stan and especially Jeremy Strong as the dubious lawyer Roy Cohn succeed overall in portraying three-dimensional characters and in private moments allow the otherwise very masculine façade, which is characterized by homophobia and misogyny, to crumble. Maria Bakalova, as Ivana Zelníčková, represents the necessary counterpoint: she is full of aspirations and joy, but soon the harsh reality sets in. Bakalova’s performance is sometimes reminiscent of that of Michelle Pfeiffer as Elvira Hancock in Scarface – shady backroom deals and opulent residences and the authentic 70s/80s music do their part to add to that. Overall, The Apprentice is an entertaining movie with shock value but few surprises.
DCM Film Distribution provided us with The Apprentice and the screencaps.
