After surprising audiences with the compelling, info-filled nature of The Big Short, Adam McKay revisits history and shifts his focus towards former Vice President, Dick Cheney (Christian Bale), and his rise to power. Once McKay showcased how he could infuse his comedic sensibilities intertwined with deadly serious content, the film community began to realize just how much of a force McKay could be in this medium. With The Big Short, it brought McKay newfound success as an Oscar darling that didn’t walk away with very many awards, but it set the table for McKay to do whatever he wanted. And boy...did he do what he wanted. Vice is a film that has been divisive for a while now. With responses ranging from “one of the year’s very best” to “a dumpster fire.” There doesn’t seem to be too much middle-ground outside of a small handful of people who enjoy the film for embracing it’s pompous attitude and utilizing it’s stylistic flourishes in unique ways. I fall into the camp that finds Vice to be one of the most grueling films in recent memory. It runs at two hours, but the content within is poorly conceived and cheaply executed. As clever as The Big Short was in it’s clever writing design and dialogue, Vice chooses an abnormal route that looks, sounds, and acts like something out of a High School video production class. Adam McKay is clearly angry about politics, political figures, and more specifically, the Republican Party. His attempt at dismantling the party and deconstructing mythology that the party has created is quite admirable, but his vision for the project is a tonal disaster. Caught in a whirlwind of eye-rolling theatrics that range from misplaced credits sequences, unidentifiable narration, and bizarre freeze frames. One might contend that it intends to subvert our expectations of a biopic by riffing on a Michael Moore or DiNesh D’Souza picture, but McKay plays it too straight to be seen that way. While playing too straight, he simultaneously vilified Cheney (fair, it’s his perspective) and stroked it with light touches of comedy that we’re seeing. The problem with the vilification of an actual person here is that there is no other side to the coin. McKay plays the one side in such an overwhelming fashion it never gives the film a chance to have a little fun with it’s discussion. On top of all of this, the way that Vice is edited is the worst nightmare of them all. Scenes are cut short to introduce us to a new sin from Cheney or to condescendingly explain newfound information in the most chopped up and short sighted way possible. Nothing here is explored or properly developed because McKay frankly doesn’t care and it’s upsetting. Upsetting to see a story with lots of detailed nuances brushed off or incomplete in exchange for more immature scenes that provoke the audience in an aggravating way. It only elevates how special something like BlacKKKlansman is when it comes around. To see a director bring stylistic flourishes to a project to tie in past events to the present in a detailed, explored, and rewarding way. If you’re going to make a provocative film, then take your damn time in making sure your ideas and concepts are explored. If you’re going to make a self-aware comedy, embrace that and don’t occasionally act like you’ve been self-aware when you forgot how to. Vice is Adam McKay unleashed and despite a great leading performance and admirable ideas, Vice is a rabid dog with no sense of direction. Vice gets a 28/100