Brad Pitt steals show from Kerry - "Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry"

Katrina Tauchen listened to what was said last night about John Kerry, his military service and the importance of the upcoming presidential election.

But the University of Missouri-Columbia freshman said later that what she was thinking was, "Wow, cool, it’s Brad Pitt."

Pitt, a Missouri native and MU-student-turned-actor, returned to Columbia last night to promote a movie, but not one he’s starring in. Instead, Pitt promoted a documentary about the Democratic presidential nominee and encouraged the capacity crowd in Jesse Auditorium to cast an informed vote on Nov. 2.

"It’s great fun to be home again," Pitt told the mostly-female audience shortly after taking the podium on the Jesse stage. "I want to thank all you guys for showing up tonight. In my day, I dedicated more time, I think, to Harpo’s and The Blue Note than events like these, so I commend you all."

Raised in Springfield, Pitt left MU two credit hours shy of graduating with an advertising degree. A Hollywood career has made him one of America’s most popular movie stars, and last night he received movie star treatment.

Pitt walked from the chancellor’s residence shortly before 6 p.m. last night and was ushered through a screaming crowd near the rear entrance of the auditorium, where he shook a few hands before entering the building. Some local Democrats accompanied him, including former Gov. Roger Wilson and Boone County sheriff candidate Dwayne Carey. Inside, the podium and stage were adorned with Kerry campaign signs.

After an introduction from Wilson, Pitt walked onstage and received a screaming, cheering, one-minute ovation from the audience before walking to the microphone and saying, "I’m not running for office."

Pitt said he wasn’t there to push a candidate on the crowd, then turned his head and mumbled "John Kerry" in a mock under-his-breath tone.

The actor then said he was in Columbia because he has rage over Sinclair Broadcast Group, the media company that plans to air on its television stations portions of a documentary called "Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal." The film is critical of Kerry’s actions upon returning home from service in the Vietnam War.

Pitt said what angers him is Sinclair’s "reckless disregard" for opposing views. One-sided views deprive audiences of context, Pitt said. "This is why I’m here - to bring you context," he said.

Pitt then introduced "Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry" and its director, George Butler. The film discusses Kerry’s service in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War and his efforts to oppose the war upon his return to the United States. Compared with other documentaries about Kerry, "Going Upriver" paints a largely flattering portrait of the presidential candidate.

Wilson told the audience Pitt would take questions in a panel discussion after the film, but that didn’t happen. Instead, the film ended, and Pitt came out one more time to accept a black and gold MU jacket from Caleb Lewis, director of the MU College Democrats.

"I thought they were going to give me a diploma," Pitt told the crowd, who returned another laugh.

Pitt closed by telling the audience members to know whom they are voting for and whom they are voting against.

A panel discussion began shortly after the film, but few audience members remained for it. Instead, crowds began gathering outside the rear of the auditorium where Pitt had entered. A black limousine sat there, too, but Pitt never entered it. An usher came outside to tell the crowd Pitt exited through another entrance.

For some, that ended a long day that revolved around the actor. Seating for the film was general admission, and students began lining up at 7:15 a.m. yesterday to secure good seats.

Audra Schupbach, a sophomore journalism major from Peoria, Ill., was the first person in line. She and her friends took turns holding the spot, and her shifts required that she miss two classes.

"Don’t tell my mom that, OK?" Schupbach said while sitting in line at about 2:30 p.m. "I told her I went to all my classes."

Jenna Isaacson photo Former Gov. Roger Wilson, right, listens yesterday as actor and former MU student Brad Pitt urges audience members at Jesse Auditorium to tell their friends to vote in the upcoming presidential election. Pitt’s comments came after a showing of the documentary film "Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry."

Brad Pitt’s silent movie routine adds difficulty to voting choices

By TONY MESSENGER
Published Thursday, October 21, 2004
It’s nice to know that in this most important of elections we have people such as Brad Pitt to tell us how to cast our votes.

Thank God.

Actually, he - God, not Pitt - is on a lot of people’s minds, also. A lot of folks who back President George W. Bush believe the divine ruler - God, not Bush - has already told them he’s firmly in the president’s camp. A vote against Bush is a vote against God, many holier-than-thou types have said recently.

Other Christians are trumping the holier-than-thou types with a smarter-than-thou policy. That’s the tone of the full-page advertisement in yesterday’s Tribune paid for by a group called the Sojourners. "God is Not a Republican," admonishes the ad. "Or a Democrat."

Pitt, on the other hand, must think he is God.

The former University of Missouri-Columbia student came back to his alma mater after all these years to stump for Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry. Kerry, it seems, is a big fan of Hollywood. He likes to throw out names of all of his Hollywood supporters. After the Democratic convention, Ben Affleck joined him on the campaign trail. Kerry snuck in a "Chris Reeve is my friend" mention in the second debate just before Superman passed away, and then he brought Michael J. Fox to sit with his wife during the final debate.

Pitt returned to Columbia to watch a movie about Kerry and tell us what a swell guy his candidate is.

He only wants the attention, though, if it’s the right kind of attention. In a move reminiscent of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s visit to a college campus to receive a First Amendment award, Pitt demanded there be no pictures taken of him and no recordings made of his voice. Reporters last night were not allowed into Jesse Auditorium unless they agreed to rules that should embarrass the young Democrats who brought the actor to town. Reporters, of course, broke the rules.

Why would the man agree to host a pro-Kerry publicity event and then kill all publicity? In essence, it’s like he was never here. When he left the movie before the question and answer period, so did his throng of female fans, leaving the director with, well, pretty much nobody. What could be going through the man’s head?

Perhaps he’s a closet Scalia clone who is merely voicing support for Kerry to prepare for an upcoming movie role? The delicious thought made me wonder. Maybe the pretty boy really can act.

And more important, if politicians are so keen on using actors as shills, who would these actors have us vote for based on the roles that made them famous?

Let’s look at some of Pitt’s movies and see what kind of president the actor really wants:

"Less Than Zero:" In this, one of Pitt’s first movies, he’s clearly a Bush man. Actually, the former Sigma Chi man doesn’t get a credit in the movie about rich Beverly Hills teenagers caught up in a world of drugs and money. He’s simply an extra during a big party scene. The movie follows the life of a young man who went away to an Ivy League college only to come back to find out his friends’ lives were spinning out of control in one big party. This is the pre-born-again Bush, a former frat boy who knew how to party.

"Fight Club:" This movie, on the other hand, is pure Kerry. Pitt plays a character, Tyler Durden, who is actually a figment of the narrator’s imagination, an alter-ego who plays out the man’s inner desires but doesn’t even truly exist. It’s one of Pitt’s best performances as an actor, equivalent with the reinvention of Kerry since the early days of the Democratic primary to the post-Howard Dean days where he transformed himself to a fighter.

"A River Runs Through It:" This Pitt hit is a Ralph Nader advertisement all the way. The piece celebrates the environmental beauty of the West in such a way that only the outsider Nader could truly support. There’s no way either of the mainstream candidates would have the patience to work through the difficulty and purity of dry fly fishing. Kerry would keep switching his flies, while Bush would pull out a semiautomatic weapon and just start blasting trout.

"Legends of the Fall:" Perhaps my favorite Pitt movie, this one is his hardest to peg. On one hand, his Tristan Ludlow character is tied at his soul to his family’s ranch, much like Bush is to his family’s land in Crawford, Texas. On the other hand, young Ludlow has a wild streak like Kerry, and he travels the world seeking his next challenge and his next love. Ultimately, he’s opposed to the status quo, even doing battle with his congressman brother. This is pure Nader, taking the 2000 election from comrade Al Gore. Like the movie’s plot lines, there are simply too many possibilities in this Pitt film for the viewer to decide on a proper presidential vote. All of the characters are flawed, and there’s entirely too much death. Maybe this one represents the American voter. Too many choices, none of them good ones.

Ultimately, using Pitt’s more recent movies as a guide, the only conclusion we can reach - despite his views last night, whatever they were - is that he’s a Bush man.

Like in real life, it’s all about the war.

In "Troy," Pitt plays the spoiled hero Achilles, who for purely personal reasons takes it upon himself to declare war on an entire nation. He uses his firepower to simply run over the enemy until they eventually figure out he has a weakness.

In "Seven," Pitt exacts revenge on a ruthless killer. Yes, we can pull the trigger with him as Pitt the cop shoots the man who killed his wife, but in the end, was it the right thing to do?

In "Spy Game," Pitt plays a young intelligence officer trained by the oldest of CIA old pros - Robert Redford starts to look a lot like Daddy Bush in this scenario - and he, too, ultimately takes on entire countries for a love he believes to be true.

So what’s a guy to do? Pitt’s lips are mouthing Kerry - though we can’t really hear him - but his work screams Bush.

Perhaps his next movie will be titled "The Dispassion of the Pitt."

The actor will talk to God and have his publicist tell us what he said.

Only then will we poor, misguided souls be able to figure out how to vote by ourselves.

Tony Messenger is a columnist at the Tribune. His column appears on Sunday and Tuesday through Thursday. He can be reached at 815-1728 or by e-mail at tmessenger@tribmail.com.

http://www.columbiatribune.com/2004/Oct/20041021Feat001.asp

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