Reaction Blog: All the King's Men

All the King’s Men (1949) is a fascinating story of the rise of a nobody to power. Willie Stark is a hick from countryside of Kanama whom have rised to become a governor. However, the road to seat for Mr. Stark isn’t really that easy. It is tough. In the story, he faced challenges along the way. But in the end, he reached his goal and unconsciously transformed himself.

In movie, Willie Stark is a person that claims to be an “honest man”. Of course, not all people bought the idea. They thought that it is just an identity that Mr. Stark would want to use and to be known for when he ran for country treasurer an then will trash later on. This prevails every election where politicians make use of “make-up-identity” to get the votes of the people. 

When the voting for the position is over, he lost. He failed to win because he is plainly a nobody without enough education. So he decided to take up law, passed it and become a certified lawyer. When he felt that this is the right time, he ran again for governor. But now, he had his political mechanism. He is backed up with his trusted person. Jack Burden, his number one supporter, and a reporter who have covered the rise of his career and his “right hand woman” Saddie Burke.

  

  

hmm...     aha!!!

During his rise, he needed support. So he made several deals with so many people to pump up his campaign. He was bringing in a lot of money and is creating a powerful influence. It didn’t come to him that he is slowly transforming himself to a person he wanted to replace in the seat of government in the first place; corrupt and injustice. Mr. Honest has never been as honest as he was.

In reaction to the film, I’d say that political aspirants are geared up to bring change for his society. But along the way, there will be choices he have to make and gamble he needs to play for survival. Mr. Stark has been a man with values, but when the desire for money and power eat him up, he became the complete opposite if what he wanted to be. 

In conclusion, it is a movie that showed the rise of a nobody to power. It also presents the susceptibility of a person and his vulnerability to temptation of money and power. This is yet another movie that is recommended for students of politics and public governance along side the movie Citizen Kane.