Don't elect this one

In his first film since 2007’s “Mr. Brooks,” Kevin Costner is back to doing what he’s done best since the classic “Bull Durham” days: playing characters that are essentially himself.

In the politically minded “Swing Vote,” Costner plays the lovable loser Ernest “Bud” Johnson, a divorced, single father who can’t seem to stop drinking or fishing long enough to find a decent job or, more importantly, vote.

After an election day that has the popular vote split exactly in half, the last ballot that will determine who will govern the free world remains in the hands of Bud.

The film is daring in its plot and actually does a fine job of making one believe that the premise is somewhat possible.

It follows the initial situation up with a realistic portrayal of modern-day media and politics, where a small-town individual is thrown into a political circus with which he’s not prepared to deal with.

Perhaps the film’s greatest achievement is that with a backbone made of politics, it manages to say propaganda free. It doesn’t choose to focus on the filmmakers’ political agendas or the politics of a certain party, but rather upon the idea that politicians will do close to anything to win over a voter.

In a world filled with people begging to share their political ideas, this is more than refreshing.

Costner’s performance holds the movie together, though his character seems fairly one-dimensional. While there are some good scenes with him in the spotlight, there are just as many awful ones (someone thought it’d be a good idea for Costner’s character to have a musical number during a Democratic Party get-together).

Since the script really doesn’t make room for any good drama, the film relies more heavily upon its comedic value. This is where it truly falls short, because it doesn’t have any.

All of the middle-aged couples in the theater thought the movie was hilarious, but to anyone under the age of 45, the jokes, and most likely the rest of the movie, will fail to impress.