When her boss and mentor, “Governor Bill” (Albert Brooks), informs his assistant that she's been selected for a cabinet position, “Ella” (Emma Mackey) is pleased at the prospect of being able to influence the state’s infrastructure and put her progressive political plans into action – at least for the next fourteen months. Her husband, "Ryan" (Jack Lowden), seems happy too, although perhaps for different reasons, and her aunt/confidante “Helen” (Jamie Lee Curtis) is glad about the news but worries that he might be a liability. Ella's attention to detail can either bore people or drive them away, so when a journalist threatens to reveal that she and Ryan have been misusing state property for personal gain, she finds herself with few people she can rely on. This isn’t helped by the fact that, despite public indifference, Ryan makes some pretty significant mistakes that negatively impact almost everyone involved. We also discover that Ella is the estranged daughter of a womanizing man, “Eddie” (Woody Harrelson), and has an exceptionally intelligent but agoraphobic brother, "Casey" (Spike Fearn), whom she wants to encourage to reconnect with his former girlfriend, “Susan” (Ayo Edebiri). So, with all that happening, she’s only been in office for three days when things begin to unravel. What's her next move? I did find the core idea appealing: a person who isn't naturally suited to political maneuvering unexpectedly finding herself in a position where she can enact change without needing to cater to special interests or even voters. However, what we get is a poorly constructed dramatic storyline that doesn’t give Jamie Lee Curtis much opportunity to make an impression, leaves Jack Lowden with a character that feels incomplete, and ultimately puts the burden on Mackey to carry the film almost entirely on her own, as there simply isn't enough material for anyone to really sink their teeth into. I thought Fearn did well in his role; his portrayal of “Casey” highlighted a condition rarely seen in Hollywood films, but even that felt superficial, like most everything else. There’s a lot of talking, yet the dialogue is surprisingly bland, and as it hurried towards its unremarkable ending, more than one person in the audience seemed ready to shout. James L. Brooks has written some wonderful screenplays over the years, but this isn't one of them.

Source on TMDB