Affecting ‘Prime Minister’ proves a winning ticket
Jacinda Ardern, the youngest woman ever elected to lead a nation, is a riddle wrapped in an enigma. For proof, either read the Harvard fellow’s new memoir, “A Different Kind of Power,” or better yet, check out the utterly engrossing documentary aptly titled “Prime Minister,” which thrives despite its struggle to penetrate Ardern’s protective shell.
Directed by Michelle Walshe and Lindsay Utz, and much of it filmed by Ardern’s husband, Clarke Gayford, the Sundance darling is unparalleled in its access to a head of state negotiating crisis after crisis while simultaneously planning for a wedding and the arrival of her first child. Trump that Mr. Trump!
Yes, there’s no escaping him, as the current U.S. president puts in a cameo or two during Ardern’s journey from New Zealand’s left-leaning Labour Party leader to world-renowned celebrity prime minister, admired for her beauty and her commitment to kindness. In other words, the antithesis of Trump. And the film deliberately calls upon us to draw the comparison, probably not quite as subtly as it thinks. But you can’t pin that on Walshe and Utz, who’d completed the movie long before Trump launched his escalating war on Ardern’s current employer.
You can’t help but chuckle at the sight of a lifelong Kiwi traipsing about snowbound Cambridge, even more surprising is seeing her go relatively unnoticed strolling through busy Harvard Square. Does she ride the Red Line, too? I’ll bet she does, but Walshe and Utz don’t allow us the pleasure. What they do instead is present a female version of Barack Obama doing her “hopey-changey” thing. At first, her pledge to accentuate openness and empathy was met with the highest of hosannas by her countrymen, particularly in the aftermath of the 2019 Christchurch massacre in which 51 Muslims were gunned down, and during the onset of COVID-19, when she intrepidly shut New Zealand’s borders, saving countless lives.
Then, MAGA came to Wellington, just as the COVID’s second wave crashed ashore. Unlike the first go-round, a large faction of the 5 million New Zealanders were no longer onboard with her mandatory lockdowns. Unrest ensued, and she was forced to pack her bags before her second three-year term was through.
What did Ardern think of all that upheaval? Who knows. Like I said, the lady is devoutly inscrutable. And the doc’s inability to pierce her political skin is the movie’s chief liability. Never are we made privy to her stances on taxation, welfare, immigration, or the economy. What is revealed is her domestic side, as we observe her striving to find the perfect balance between mothering her people and mothering her precocious daughter, Neve, born just weeks after Ardern was sworn in at age 37.
Even her gent, and now, husband, Clarke, is unable to coax more than a look of glee or discouragement, depending on the current polling. We hear him from behind his videocam peppering his beloved with provocative queries on various subjects, but she knows better than to say anything remotely controversial. The flipside of that is having the opportunity to watch her playfully interact with Neve in much the same way we watched JFK do with John-John and Caroline in the Oval back in the 1960s. It’s all very sweet.
Ardern, much like Sally Field, is someone you “really, really like.” Her generosity and compassion are off the charts. And how refreshing to witness a politician taking a firm stand on issues, unconcerned by how it might affect her numbers. But is she too nice, too kind? Don’t politicians need to be tough? Never cry? Can you let the people you lead see you sweat? There was a time when you could, but sadly, those days have passed. Just ask Obama and Justin Trudeau.
Yet, observing Ardern negotiate the halls of government as well as the hallowed halls of Harvard, you cheer for her empathetic style to prevail over the hateful discourse currently emanating from the seats of power. Can’t we all just get along? It’s inspiring to hear Ardern proclaim we can. Like her hero, Ernest Shackleton, who kept every member of his Antarctic expedition alive for two years after their vessel, Endurance, ran aground, Ardern refuses to cede her faith in humanity’s capacity to be charitable.
And with the world in the messed-up shape it’s currently in, doesn’t that extraordinary optimism give you hope? It sure did arise in Park City back in January, when “Prime Minister” won the coveted Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival, beating out the equally invigorating “Deaf President Now!” Heck, even if you’ve sworn off politics and vowed to shun the callousness of nihilistic senators such as Joni Ernst, you’ll want to do yourself the favor of sharing 90 minutes with one of the world’s most remarkable women.
She may be coy about her politics, but when it comes to showing heart, Ardern is an open book. And in witnessing her genuine, effervescent joy and positivity, I was reminded of Sam’s most profound line from “The Lord of the Rings,” a movie synonymous with New Zealand. “There’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it’s worth fighting for.” That’s Ardern to a T, and you can bet she doesn’t just believe it, she lives it.
Movie review
Prime Minister
Rated: Not rated
Featuring: Jacinda Ardern and Clarke Gayford
Directors: Michelle Walshe and Lindsay Utz
Runtime: 96 minutes
Where: In theaters June 13
Grade: B+
