Jim McAllister (Matthew Broderick) is a model teacher at Carver High. He cares about the kids and their learning, and he's involved in plenty of school activities. It's unfortunate that his fellow teacher and good buddy Dave Novotny (Mark Harelik) has bad judgement when it comes to relating to kids, but Jim knows better.
If Jim is a model teacher, then Tracy Flick (Reese Witherspoon) is even more of a model student. She's the keener you've seen in your own classes, with her hand up so high in hopes of answering every question, you'd think her arm would drop off. She studies hard, she's involved in everything and she's the sort who just can't help getting on your nerves.
And Tracy gets on Jim’s nerves too, which is where trouble begins for our not-quite-perfect teacher. When Tracy decides to run for student body president, Jim makes the mistake of interfering in the process. Once he recruits injured football star Paul Metzler (Chris Klein) to run against Tracy, things start to go downhill. At the same time, Jim's personal life starts to get messy, as he becomes increasingly attracted to Linda Novotny, Dave's ex-wife. As events unfold, we witness the hard-fought presidential campaign, complete with dirty tricks, Tracy’s increasing desperation, and the downward spiral of Jim.
Election is a brilliant satire that skewers hypocrites and success-a-holics equally. While each of the main characters is a stereotype (keener, jock, outsider and nerdy teacher), they are drawn with such care that they seem very real, even when they are used simply to generate a laugh. They even get the teacher's wonky tie just right.
Some elements of Election are much deeper others. Particularly impressive are those involving the struggles of Paul's sister, Tammy (Jessica Campbell), to reconcile herself with her sexuality. These touching scenes are right on the mark, accurately portraying the desperation of youth. They show both director Alexander Payne’s deft touch and the writing skill of Payne and his co-screenwriter Jim Taylor.
Witherspoon is hilariously uptight as Tracy, the over-achiever. She is so cute and perky, you want to love her. Sort of. And despise her at the same time. Broderick plays a sympathetic Jim, even at his most stupid and irresponsible moments. The real surprises here are Klein and especially Campbell, both of whom excel in their first film roles.
Payne made a strong Hollywood debut with Citizen Ruth, and became a sought-after filmmaker with Election added to his résumé. While it isn't anything like usual teen film fare, Election has more to say about the high school scene than a dozen vapid teen movies of its era, such as Cruel Intentions. It's funny, it's biting, it's sensitive and it's an enjoyable and thought-provoking film.
