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Few people in Hollywood actually like Aaron Sorkin, least of all his fellow Writer’s Guild scribes who recently learned about his attempts to undermine the guild’s solidarity behind the writers strike. But NBC political anchors really really like him. Last night, NBC’s Brian Williams and MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann had an on-air bromance over, of all things, Aaron Sorkin’s writing. Both men, twice on the telecast, compared Barack Obama’s Democratic National Convention acceptance speech to a scene in Sorkin’s pic The American President where President Andrew Shepherd rails against his political opponent. (See YouTube below…) Here’s the thing: film reviewers found the weakest part of that Sorkin movie was its naive view of politics. As the Los Angeles Times‘ movie critic Kenny Turan wrote, the pic is filled with ”fantasies [and] pipe dreams about the American political system and where it could theoretically be headed”. I don’t know which is more humiliating for Williams and Olbermann: that they couldn’t compare Obama’s speech to something real, like nomination acceptance speeches from the past … or they tried to praise Obama’s speech and wound up unwittingly dissing it… or that they think Aaron Sorkin is so quotable.
Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.
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Just because something might be somewhat unrealistic on the surface dosen’t mean we shouldn’t aspire for it! Take The movie DAVE with Kevin Kline-Not really believable, but a terrific fantasy about the type of decency I would hope is within all of us. The bottom line with this upcoming Election is, we need a President that will change the Phycology of this country. Someone who can make the country as a whole feel good again about waking up each morning. It’s been at least 8 years since I had that feeling and I actually voted for George Bush! Go OBAMA!
Thank you, Nikki. Thank you for finally saying this.
The West Wing was every liberal’s wet dream. And these guys (Williams, Olberman) totally identified with it. That’s fine, but don’t start screaming when people accuse you of letting your bias show. And you’re right Nikki: They couldn’t compare this speech to anything – or anyone in real life? Sad and dismal.
Sorkin is another story altogether. He’s our version of Bill Clinton: Publicity hungry, narcissistic, utterly self-involved (ask his ex-wife to pinpoint exactly how soon after – or just before – she gave birth that he split) a former drug addict, a credit hog (talk to the writers on his shows), and finally, a guy who undermined the union.
Thank you, Nikki, for finally unmasking this guy.
Aaron Sorkin is “so quotable”. “You can’t handle the truth!” is conceivably one of the most quoted lines in the last twenty years of film.
Love him or hate him, Sorkin turns out some of the best dialogue in Hollywood. Period.
I disagree.
I think Sorkin is much admired by we working writers. He’s a guy who’s career is enviable in almost any way.
But don’t discount the fact they are NBC anchors and Sorkin did a lot of his work for NBC.
Sorkin had “fantasies [and] pipe dreams about the American political system and where it could theoretically be headed?”
Well, doesn’t Obama speech sort of confirm those fantasies then? You refuted your own argument, Nikki.
For all of Sorkin’s flaws, there’s no one like him when he’s on his game like he was for that script.
Actually, I think it’s more disgusting that Sorkin parades himself around as a pseudo-liberal-friend-of-the-working-man then turns around and sells out his union brethren. The guy is a slimeball, And I’m being nice.
i couldn’t believe that either! there’s nothing particularly memorable to me about any film or tv show i’ve seen written by aaron sorkin. i agree. completely embarrassing. get some anchors with real political chops and knowledge.
It might have to do with Sorkin’s time on NBC’s The West Wing which made all the usual beltway folks sound way more intelligent and articulate than they actually are.
Comparing Obama to Sorkin is comparing apples and grapes.
Well, let’s be honest, Obama’s speech had its fair share of pipe dreams as well.
It also should be noted that one of Turan’s questions (he, after all, enjoyed The American President) was whether the people of the US would embrace such a liberal president. His final paragraph could almost be about this upcoming election:
“But Reiner and writer Sorkin have gone even further–they’ve put a distinctly liberal spin on this dream White House. They’ve created a President who believes in the Democratic Party dream and isn’t afraid to speak up about it, who can passionately defend the ACLU and gun control and still have the great majority of the country on his side. Exactly how much of a fantasy is that? Tune in next November to find out.”
I know people hate Sorkin for various reasons but I think people need to step back a bit and at least give the man credit. His writing is superb and he’s terrific and crafting rousing monologues. The comparison isn’t a bad one. And while Obama’s delivered a great address, I don’t think anyone is comparing it to the great REAL speeches of all time.
Nikki,
Not one that ever comments on posts, because frankly I wouldn’t waste my time reading most of the comments. Your reporting is usually first-rate, and while I don’t always agree with your commentary, it’s rooted in strong background information and can be taken at face value, without throwing in my two cents. However, you are missing a few key variables in your tirade about Sorkin and the folks at NBC News:
1. Olbermann and Sorkin have been admirers of one another for many years. Remember, it was Olbermann’s time at Sports Center that Sorkin used as a starting-off point for the characters in ABC’s Sports Night. Olbermann has also quoted Sorkin’s lines on more than one occasion during this campaign: here, and here for starters.
2. Most critics in politics adore Sorkin’s writing (though admittedly those with a liberal slant), while some critics in entertainment don’t like him for being an somewhat outspoken elite writer. But that wasn’t what at issue here. What Williams and Olbermann were referring to in this particular instance, wasn’t completely a chorus to the quick wit of Sorkin’s writing. Detailed further by an MTV blog of all places, there were key lines in Obama’s speech that mirrored The American President in tone and verbage. What Olbermann and Williams pointed out has some merit.
3. Even after Sorkin’s exit from The West Wing, the showrunners knew where the country was heading in 2008. The final seasons featured a presidential race between a inspiring, inexperienced minority Democrat versus a maverick old-school Republican. And after some investigation by The Guardian, it turns out that wasn’t a coincidence at all.
Moreover, the anchors, like much of the country, did not seem to be all that upset about the plight of writers (which is not to say that’s a good thing, just a fact). I doubt they will stop talking about Sorkin anytime soon just because he attended a few closed-door meetings.
Anyone who didn’t love Sports Night deserves Two and a Half Men and its ilk.
In Olbermann’s case, it’s also because of Sorkin’s work on Sports Night, a show that was so close to Olbermann’s life experiences on ESPN he joked he should get royalties.
It has to be the hallucinogenic mushrooms that they are all using.
There’s nothing wrong with Olbermann or Williams, they’re (biased) newsmen, not media critics. Their words tried to relate the “storybook” aspect of Obama’s nomination to an equally ignorant American public… Expecting these guys to understand the weight of their praise for Sorkin’s story is analogous to suggesting one take the inane babble of a simple entertainment industry blogger as serious commentary on divisive labor issues.
I’m a WGA member, and I’ll tell you this… Aaron Sorkin is far more fiscally talented and brilliantly creative than 85% of the membership. I’d trust his leadership over most of my fellow members any day of the week. I wish he would have undermined us, maybe we actually could have learned something from the strike.
Yea, Sorkin is a hack. His heavy handed, preachy style is an insult to the intelligence of the viewing public. I was so happy when ‘Studio 60′ was put out of it’s misery, that show was awful. His Oscar aspirations for ‘Charlie Wilson’s War’ never came to fruition either, not even close. Leave it to Sorkin to take promising source material with an A-list cast and end up with a film that’s mediocre at best. He really has a way of sucking the life out of everything he gets involved with.
As for NBC, I can’t get enough of watching their anchors bicker and fight on air. Keep it up guys, you’ve earned my viewership.
West Wing was boring. Even A Few Good Men rang false. “You need me on that wall. You want me on that wall.” Yeah, right.
And “American President” was just a tad better than “Dave” which isn’t saying much.
That guy got way lucky. He writes about politics like how movie stars want to play them. Not like they really are and how they really act.
Also, don’t you think Olbermann probably looooooooved sports night, for obvious reasons?
I get that Sorkin’s kind of a jerk and has pissed off a lot of people, but pretending that there was never anything of value in his writing is delusional. He is, in fact, one of the most quotable writers out there, and any politician would do well to take a few plays out of his book.
Aaron Sorkin has made a big mistake.
Well his psdeo-anchfor friends at MNBC had an embarrassing emplosion in Denver this week. Which has the online media talking and youtube fired up too. Also NBC News has lost viewership big time becouse of being in the tank with the leftwing. O’Reilly of Fox and CNN has been creaming this dinonetwork like crazy. What will NBC and MSNBC do when thier ratings get so low NBC Universal would consider selling off thier news division to someone else becouse thier opioined biased journalists are knee-deep for Obama.
Wow, talk about a stunning lack of objectivity, Niki! Where to begin?
First: Wow, some reviewers didn’t like The American President. What is that, a diss? The world was not unanimously behind Sorkin’s Capra-like vision of politics. Oh, until about four years later when his TV show, hitting the exact same note, became one of the most watched and admired shows in the country. Okay.
Second: To the guy who wrote above “There’s nothing particularly memorable to me about any film or tv show I’ve seen written by Aaron Sorkin.” While you may not like the guy’s “style” of writing that’s just an idiot ass comment for one simple reason: “You can’t handle the truth.” One of the most quoted and MEMORABLE lines in the history of movies. My point is minor but make a different argument or chose your words more carefully.
Third: Aside from all of this, Sorkin is a brilliant writer, and anybody who can’t admit that either has no clue what good screenwriting is (which wouldn’t surprise me considering how much bad screenwriting there is) or is going out of their way to ignore the obvious.
Fourth: What someone did or did not do during the WGA strike is not related to their abilities as a writer. There are A LOT of bad writers in this business who I’m sure were on that picket line every day. I’d rather work with Sorkin.
Many of the comparisons come from the writers after Sorkin left basing a presidential candidate on Obama and Obama’s quote that he would like to use Sorkin’s lines.
As it’s been said, we deserve much better than we’ve had the past eight years. In that time the best we’ve had was the fiction!
Whenever I watch that scene I can’t help but note what a strong call was made to do something about the threat of global warming – in 1995.
Wow, Nikki, that chip on your shoulder is almost as big as Sorkin’s. Whatever else he’s done, the guy has written some damn fine scripts over the years. Pretending otherwise because you’ve got a beef with him makes you as petty as Sorkin. I’m disappointed.
Also, The American President and The West Wing both painted a portrait of politics that was idealistic, not naive. What a sad place we’ve come to when our leaders are denigrated for expressing a message of idealism.
It was perfectly appropriate to compare the speech to a B-movie from several years ago. It couldn’t have stood any stronger comparison.