Say what you will about director Oliver Stone's motives in making W. before the administration of the man for which the film is named is even over, and releasing the film a few weeks before a Presidential election. Knee-jerk reactions on conservative blogs, talk radio and Fox News have their theories and are not afraid to voice them—even if they haven't seen the film yet. Matter of fact, most nay-sayers are proud to boast that they will never see the film because, after all, Hollywood is comprised of Obama-loving leftists who couldn't possibly have made a fair portrayal of their "man" George W. Bush (brilliantly played by Josh Brolin). What they would find, however, is an even-handed examination of a complicated man with a chequered past and a troubled tenure as our 43rd President.

It is impossible to gain a lot of insight and a cogent picture of what makes Bush tick in a mere two hours. Instead, the best we can get are snapshots and glimpses into pivotal times in his life. Stone accomplishes this by jumping back and forth between Bush's raucous frat-boy days, his early adulthood when he struggled to find his way in the world, his radical transformation from drunkard to believer, and pivotal times of his presidency. The emotional center-point of the film is Bush's struggle to live under the weight of his family name, trying to win the approval of his father and to emerge from the shadow of his brother Jeb. One of the most powerful scenes is the elder Bush (James Cromwell) telling George, "You disappoint me, Junior," after another one of his brushes with the law. The anguish on Brolin's face is heartbreaking. It is all the more revealing that George continues to call him affectionately "poppy" even in the midst of a tongue-lashing.

When chronicling his years in the White House, W. focuses on the inner-workings of the administration's war on terror, specifically the faulty decision to invade Iraq under the presumption of the presence of WMDs. While Vice President Dick Cheney (Richard Dreyfuss) and Donald Rumsfield (Scott Glenn) are gung-ho to invade, it is General Colin Powell (Jeffrey Wright) who is skeptical and wants to proceed with caution. Bush is driven by a reckless, "Don't mess with Texas" machismo to do something to show might and power in light of a changing world (although the events of 9/11 get little mention directly in the film). Cheney and Rumsfield, with the help of Karl Rove (Toby Jones) who is only concerned with public perception, polls and appealing to "the base," convince Bush that invading Iraq is the right thing to do. As history has shown, it has proven to be a disaster with Bush as the figurehead taking the blame for its catastrophic result. The famous "Mission Accomplished" speech in 2004 symbolizes the sheer magnitude of the misjudgment, and Stone captures the false bravado well. The fall-out of the decision is also powerful as the once stead-fast Bush crumbles under the media scrutiny and backlash of the American people.

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