I had a hell of time deciding between this and Payne's 2004 film "Sideways." They're both black comic masterpieces of the highest order (something I don't think you can really say about any of his other films, good as they are). But "Election" is much more vicious in its humor, and it doesn't really have any of the genuine heart that you find in "Sideways" and his later films. So I guess that's why I like it better.
There are only a few movies I can remember seeing where I laughed so hard I hurt myself. "The Big Lebowski." "Shaun of the Dead." Even "Borat" (which, unfortunately, doesn't really hold up on repeated viewings). But "Election," for me, blows them all away. There were moments in this movie that had me laughing so hard I thought I would pass out. I know it's a cliché to say that, but I don't mean it figuratively. I vividly remember actually seeing spots.
The fact that I found this movie THAT funny probably says as much about me as it does about the film. This is a strikingly mean-spirited movie, and the contempt Payne shows for his characters borders on sociopathic. Apparently, that's the comedic wavelength I most appreciate ("Fargo" brought a similar reaction from me a couple years earlier, and I still chuckle at the thought of Marvin getting his head blown off in "Pulp Fiction").
I don't think Payne's wit has been this brutally sharp since. "Sideways" is a brilliant film in a much more nuanced way than this one is, but the overall melancholic tone tamps down the belly laughs in favor of a more ruminative experience. Payne has moved more and more in that direction over the ensuing years — so much so that I can only think of three or four genuine laughs in his most recent film, "Nebraska." He's become a kinder, gentler social satirist than "Election" would have ever suggested.
I appreciate this middle-period, more reflective Payne. But I have to admit — I kind of miss the cruelty.
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