Detailed Instructions: In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.
Problem:( note : there are spoilers regarding the film 's climax ; the election , of course ) we see matthew broderick , a man torn to a primal state ; he 's been unfaithful to his wife , lied to and manipulated his students , and by the same token they 've demeaned his masculinity ,
his self - respect , his desperate attempt at changing the world .
and yet , he equates the cause of his pain , his torment , with tracy flick ( reese witherspoon ) .
no matter how many students have come and gone , and disappointed him as an educator , she 's the real threat .
about to give in , and divulge that she 's won by only a lone vote , broderick 's mccalister turns in defeat , sees tracy 's euphoric celebration in the outside corridor and says , ' no ' .
the fact that he simultaneously lusts after her ideologically further illustrates that freudian foundation of entitlement which all men , no matter how obscure , have in their relationships ; a traditional expectation of success , to usurp and surpass women as a proverbial industry .
she ca n't go higher than him .
he wo n't allow it .
and what 's amazing about " election " is that every word of that criticism is drawn from a rather opaque metaphor .
early in the film we learn that tracy was romantically , and then sexually , involved with a now departed teacher .
it 's like payne and taylor , his co - screenwriter , have taken tracy , a girl desperate for friendship , loyalty , and almost perversely drawn the mythological pattern of kids who were so utterly rejected by their peers , that they found sitting at the teachers ' lunch table more fitting , to an unlikely extreme with her as the protagonist .
and it 's amazing the compassion that we have ; it seems so real to us , and not merely because it 's happened before , splashed all over the front pages , but , because of the all around " nice " persona of these people , we easily dismiss the truly wayward deeds of the characters .
it 's with mandy barnett 's " if you 'll be the teacher " playing winsomely over the closing credits that payne skewers the tenets of his detractors most ; a final , viscous injection of bittersweet irony .
sexuality , though , is not the only basis for payne 's satire , or its success .
it also makes a telling point about politics , friendship , and class boundaries .
satire is required ( or ought to be , anyway ) to take itself seriously , or act so , while the audience does not .
it 's a fine line to straddle , but some films ignore it altogether ( " drop dead gorgeous " leaps infuriatingly to mind ) .
payne and taylor hit the right chord ; their characters are real people : neither is perfect , but rather both of the leads are flawed , misguided individuals who retain , somewhat , noble intentions at heart .
we sympathize with them , but still , as a satire , their idiosyncratic behavior , and their wrongdoing , is taken to an extreme for the audience to knowingly chuckle , but also reflect and meditate , about .
minus half a point , though , for payne admitting not to having seen " ferris bueller 's day off " .
whatever .
Solution:
P