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Wilson Movie Review

Wilson is a 1944 biographical film directed by Henry King and starring Alexander Knox in the main role. It is a solid, but standard biopic.

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“Now I know why the Democratic Party chose a jackass for a mascot“

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Woodrow Wilson is probably one of the most respected US presidents. He led the country during WWI and was known for his isolationism, which is explored in this movie with great focus. For the most part, this is one of those biopics and period pieces that are very much Oscar bait and certainly not populist in any shape or form, at least not for today’s audiences as times have changed when it comes to movie appeal.

In many respects, the movie is dated for its didacticism and excessive speeches, but in all honesty it was also not among the weakest of these historical or biographical dramas as it is so well crafted across the board and it is historically interesting, so I did appreciate it for that. The emphasis on the complexities of this era and the differences in thinking when it comes to America’s involvement in other wars was interesting, but those speeches could get didactic at times. In terms of cinematic qualities, the filmmakers never quite elevated the material at hand. Henry King was nominated for an Oscar, but he did a much better job directing the previous year’s ‘The Song of Bernadette’. Here, the movie was well made, but hardly ever artistic.

Two and a half hours of runtime was just too much for this particular story that never needed it. The focus on his politics is strong, but very little attention is given on his family life and what we got was rather uninteresting. And this is the man we are talking about here – Wilson was not all that interesting or charismatic to support a full-blown movie. Certainly his isolationist policy was admirable and how he was pro-peace throughout his tenure, but otherwise his character was never explored all that well, though his speeches were undeniably memorable.

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The highlight of the picture has to be Alexander Knox in a truly inspired casting choice. He was basically an unknown before landing this gig and he delivered in spades. He was fantastic throughout and he elevated the otherwise pedestrian role effortlessly. Cedric Hardwicke, Charles Coburn and Geraldine Fitzgerald were also very good in their admittedly minor roles as Wilson is all about, well, Wilson. It received ten Oscar nominations, winning five out of those ten. Needless to say, it did not deserve the majority of them, except for the score, which was strong, and for the main actor.