Primary Colors (film)

Plot

Henry Burton, a young political idealist and grandson of a civil rights leader, is recruited to join the campaign of Jack Stanton, a charismatic Southern governor trying to win the Democratic Party nomination for President of the United States.

Henry is impressed by Jack's genuine warmth and empathy. He joins the governor's inner circle of political advisers: Jack's formidable wife, Susan Stanton; unconventional political strategist, Richard Jemmons; intelligent and attractive spokeswoman, Daisy Green; and sly political operator, Howard Ferguson, as they journey to New Hampshire, the first state to hold a presidential primary.

After Jack completes an impressive debate performance against his rivals, Henry's ex-girlfriend March Cunningham shows up to question the governor about his arrest for an anti-war protest at the 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago. Jack had called a U.S. senator to help him get released, then persuaded the mayor of Chicago to have his police record expunged. The team becomes worried that Jack's past indiscretions may be used against him by the press and his opponents.

The Stantons hire an old friend, the tough but unbalanced Libby Holden, to investigate allegations - including Jack's notorious womanizing - that could be used by opponents to undermine him. One of these women, Susan's hairdresser, Cashmere McLeod, produces secret taped conversations with the governor, showing they had an affair. Henry discovers the tapes have been doctored, so Libby tracks down the man responsible and forces him at gunpoint to confess his guilt in a letter to the American public.

The campaign is then rocked by a fresh allegation when Jack's old friend, "Fat Willie" McCollister, approaches Henry to tell him that his 17-year-old daughter Loretta, who worked for the Stantons as a babysitter, is pregnant and that Jack is the father. Henry and Howard tell Willie he must allow his daughter to undergo an amniocentesis to determine paternity. Although they persuade Willie to remain silent, Henry is sickened.

Realizing Jack is falling behind in the polls, his team adopt an offensive strategy, attacking his nearest rival, Senator Lawrence Harris, for casting anti-Israel votes and favoring cuts in Social Security and Medicare. Harris confronts Jack during a radio talk show in Florida but suffers two heart attacks during the encounter. This medical setback causes his withdrawal from the race. He is replaced by his friend, former Florida governor Fred Picker, whose wholesome, straight-talking image is an immediate threat to Stanton's campaign.

Jack and Susan send Henry and Libby on an opposition research mission into Picker's past. They discover he had a cocaine addiction as governor, which led to the disintegration of his first marriage. They also meet with Picker's cocaine supplier, with whom Picker had a homosexual affair.

Not expecting the information to ever be used, Libby and Henry share their findings with Jack and Susan, but are dismayed when the couple decides to leak their findings to the press. Libby tells Jack that if he does so, she will reveal that he tampered with the paternity test results, which proved that he had had sex Willie's daughter. Libby commits suicide after realizing she spent her life idealizing Jack and Susan only to learn how flawed they truly are.

Racked with guilt over Libby's death, Jack and Henry take the incriminating information to Picker, and apologize for seeking it out. Picker admits to his past indiscretions, deciding to withdraw from the race and endorse Jack. Henry intends to quit the campaign, as he has become deeply disillusioned with the political process. Jack begs Henry to reconsider, saying they can make history.

Months later, President Jack Stanton is dancing at the inaugural ball with Susan. He shakes the hands of his campaign staff, the last of whom is Henry.

Cast

• John Travolta as Governor Jack Stanton
• Emma Thompson as First Lady of Arkansas Susan Stanton
• Adrian Lester as Henry Burton
• Billy Bob Thornton as Richard Jemmons
• Kathy Bates as Libby Holden
• Maura Tierney as Daisy Green
• Paul Guilfoyle as Howard Ferguson
• Larry Hagman as Governor Fred Picker
• Stacy Edwards as Jennifer Rogers
• Diane Ladd as Mamma Stanton
• Kevin Cooney as Senator Lawrence Harris
• Rebecca Walker as March Cunningham
• Caroline Aaron as Lucille Kaufman
• Tommy Hollis as William "Fat Willie" McCollister
• Rob Reiner as Izzy Rosenblatt
• Ben L. Jones as Arlen Sporken
• J. C. Quinn as Uncle Charlie
• Allison Janney as Miss Walsh
• Robert Klein as Norman Asher
• Mykelti Williamson as Dewayne Smith
• Robert Easton as Dr. Beauregard
• Geraldo Rivera as Himself
• Charlie Rose as Himself
• Larry King as Himself
• Chelcie Ross as Charlie Martin
• Tony Shalhoub as Eddie Reyes
• John Vargas as Lorenzo Delgado
• Robert Cicchini as Jimmy Ozio
• Gia Carides as Cashmere McLeod
• Bill Maher as Himself
• Sophia Choi as Herself

Production

Following the publication of the book Primary Colors by Joe Klein (initially published anonymously) in 1996, director Mike Nichols paid more than $1 million for the screen rights. The film was scripted by writer and director Elaine May, who had collaborated with Nichols in the comedy double-act Nichols and May in the 1950s and 60s. Tom Hanks expressed interest in the project but was busy working on Saving Private Ryan and executive-producing From the Earth to the Moon for HBO, so recommended Nichols cast someone else. At the Cannes Festival, Emma Thompson said she did not base her performance as Susan Stanton on Hillary Clinton, while John Travolta said he based his performance as Jack Stanton on several presidents, but mostly on Bill Clinton.

Nichols was criticized for cutting an interracial love scene between Henry Burton (Adrian Lester) and Susan from the final version of the film. He responded that he had removed the scene because of unfavorable reactions from a preview audience. The film also generated controversy for its depiction of a Clinton-like character as it was also released close to the Clinton–Lewinsky scandal.

Reception

Box office

The film earned a disappointing box office gross, only taking $39 million domestically and $13 million in foreign markets, for a worldwide total gross of $52 million against a budget of $65 million.

Critical response

The film received a positive reception from critics. Varietys reviewer called it a "film à clef" and said that the American public was likely to accept it as a factual account because it so closely mirrored real life characters and events. The Los Angeles Times gave high marks to the movie, noting Travolta's close mirroring of Bill Clinton, but describing Thompson's character as actually not based on Hillary Clinton. Entertainment Weekly called Travolta "Clintonian". The Cincinnati Enquirer gave accolades to the character portrayals of Bill and Hillary Clinton. Syndicated reviewer Roger Ebert said that the film was "insightful and very wise about the realities of political life" and The Cincinnati Enquirer said the film was a "nuanced dissection of how real American politics work". and Gene Shalit on the Today Show called the film an absolute spectacle. Phillip Schofield also liked it.

In a negative review, Jeff Vice of the Deseret News wrote that the last half of the film dragged, Travolta's performance seemed more like an impersonation than actual acting, the film lacked subtlety or depth, and it was loaded with cheap and obvious jokes. Nevertheless, Vice wrote that "solid support is provided by Maura Tierney, Larry Hagman, and Stacy Edwards".

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 80% based on 79 reviews, with an average rating of 7.20/10. The site's critics' consensus reads: "Well acted and surprisingly funny." On Metacritic it has a score of 70% based on reviews from 30 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade "B" on scale of A to F.

Accolades

Home video

Primary Colors was released on VHS and DVD in September 1998. It was released on Blu-ray in October 2019. Blu-ray.com gave the transfer a negative review, calling it "a digitally processed mess. Grain is frozen in place, edge enhancement is obvious, clarity struggles, and details are sloppy and indistinct." It was released on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray by Shout! Factory on July 1, 2025, sourced from a new 4K restoration from the original camera negatives.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack album, featuring music by and produced by Ry Cooder, was released in March 1998.

Notes

References

References

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4. Faye Fiore. (March 2, 1998). "Just What He Didn't Need Right Now; Movies: Will 'Primary Colors,' a thinly veiled slice of presidential life, hurt or help Bill Clinton?". [[Los Angeles Times]].
5. link. (2011-03-13 , Doreen Carvajal, ''[[The New York Times]]'', July 18, 1996)
6. (20 December 2012). "Who's Afraid Of Nichols & May?".
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35. Holger Petersen - Talking Music - 2011 -Page 296 "Movie soundtracks, however, kept him creative, at home, and paying the bills. ... That led to Wim Wenders (Paris, Texas; Buena Vista Social Club), Louis Malle (Alamo Bay), and Mike Nichols (Primary Colors) asking him to soundtrack their films"
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