The Apprentice (2024) Review: Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong Deliver Impressive Performances in Trump Biopic

Not everyone needs a movie.

 

I’ve been trying to weigh my thoughts on The Apprentice ever since I had the chance to see it over a week ago. On one hand, it’s a technically well-made film with impressive acting performances and a vibe that I can get behind. On the other is, at its core, a film whose subject matter is deeply problematic, especially in today’s social and political climate. It has left me torn on what to think. And my opening statement is the one thing that I keep coming back to.

The Apprentice tells the story of a young Donald Trump (Sebastian Stan), who is given a position as an executive in his father’s company and works to make a name for himself in bustling Manhattan. Trump is brought under the wing of famed fixer Roy Cohn (Jeremy Strong) who teaches trump his ways in ruthless winning. As the film progresses, Trump’s naive innocence in his youth is replaced by a cold, ruthless demeanor that makes him many enemies.

The issue I have with the film though is that it just doesn’t have any business being made in 2024. Political opinions aside, Donald Trump is an incredibly divisive person that has caused a lot of division amongst the public. His actions and reputation precede him and there’s no avoiding it when discussing him. And in 2024, we do not need a movie that highlights him even further in the spotlight. Instead, a movie like this feels ripe for 2016, before Trump’s presidency and when his public image was never higher.

Yet, I can’t help but acknowledge how good of a movie The Apprentice is. Both Sebestian Stan and Jeremy Strong give incredible performances in their respective roles. The film looks incredible to boot. There’s so much nostalgia packed into the movie’s style. I love that about the film. It’s as if it was plucked straight out of the late 70s early 80s and put on my screen in 2024.

And to say this is a career defining turn for Jeremy Strong may be an understatement. While Stan is very good, it’s Strong who delivers the film’s quintessential performance. He completely encapsulates Roy Cohn down to the mannerisms, transforming himself from an actor to the shady fixer that made Trump who he is today. It was captivating on screen. I feel like it may have actually served the film better to be a narrative focused on Cohn with Strong in the lead role instead. That’s how strong of a performance it was.

Personally though, I can’t help but shake the feeling that this isn’t the kind of movie we need right now. Our society has never been more divided, and while The Apprentice holds nothing back in portraying Trump as a cold-hearted, ruthless businessman who, at his peak, was no good to nobody, it also does little to bring the man down from the spotlight either. There’s just little need otherwise for a film about the life of a man who’s already been so heavily scrutinized under the public microscope and whose rhetoric has already cause so much hatred and division in the country.

Final Thoughts

I know the term “separate the art from the artist” is often used in cases like this. While Trump didn’t have anything to do with the production of The Apprentice personally, it’s a film that puts him in the spotlight regardless. Though I can appreciate all the excellent work that went into making this film, it just feels wrong to release it so close to election time in the United States. It’s certainly a film that can be appreciated for what it is, but not one that ever needed to be made.

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Aaryn Souza
Aaryn Souza
I have been watching movies my whole life and fell in love at an early age. I was entranced by the ability for a film to whisk me away to a different universe, and that really started with the Star Wars Franchise. I'm by no means an expert and can roll with opinions that might be controversial, but my love for cinema will always remain. When I'm not watching movies, I work in Marketing Analytics with my degree from Western New England University. See my Letterboxd: ‎asouza16’s profile • Letterboxd MY FAVORITE MOVIES: Good Will Hunting Star Wars: A New Hope (or the whole saga), La La Land, Before Sunrise