It is very important to mention that people, particularly conservatives, who didn’t watch The Daily Show or like Jon Stewart in general, will probably not enjoy this film simply because it’s very on-brand for him. Many conservatives might appreciate the movie because it pokes fun of the political system and news media as a whole in a bipartisan comedic body slam. Not that Jon Stewart is dying for the conservatives to love him, but they do comprise roughly half the country, so there’s that. I could personally care less if they watch it because I know the film will find it’s core audience amongst Stewart’s already-huge fanbase.
However, Irresistible is not some pandering leftist manifesto. It’s a smart comedy that points out the flaws of all aspects of the United State’s political landscape. It discusses how bad the division is in our country and how the media and politicians are complicit in this division. It’s a problem for both sides of the aisle that needs to be addressed before any real change can be made.
“…a smart comedy that points out the flaws of all aspects of the United State’s political landscape.”
Irresistible shows us how easy it is to manipulate the system to anyone’s will whose wily enough. This is good for the plot-twist in the movie but not good for us in the real world. Stewart is letting us know that and even has a Washington insider speaking through the credits about all the lump sums of money that are rolling around in Super PACs and all the corruption that comes with it.
If I could sum up the film’s message, it’s from this scrolling text towards the end of Irresistible: “Money lived happily ever after…reveling in its outsized influence over American politics.” It is sad but true. It’s also entirely unsurprising that Stewart still has his finger on the pulse of American politics, and honestly, thank God for that.
"…not some pandering leftist manifesto."
