IMDb RATING
5.7/10
5.1K
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In a politically divided America, a man struggles to make it through the Thanksgiving holiday without destroying his family.In a politically divided America, a man struggles to make it through the Thanksgiving holiday without destroying his family.In a politically divided America, a man struggles to make it through the Thanksgiving holiday without destroying his family.
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I just saw this for the first time, and wow. It's a totally plausible scenario for this year. It feels a little toothless, and the characters are a little too on the nose, but it's a quality movie and has it's fair share of laughs. Definitely worth a watch.
The Oath is an example of a relatively new genre that I suppose we can expect to see more of: the political horror movie. The thumbnail describes it cheerfully as "a man struggles to keep his politically divided family from falling apart over the Thanksgiving holiday." Nuh uh. It's actually a plausible scenario for a fascist takeover in America. Appropriately, it sneaks up on you. It starts out as a light comedy -- a good excuse to munch through a bucket of popcorn -- then seems to veer off course, becoming uncomfortably raw. And then things head south. Predictably some critics have called it out for inconsistency of tone -- missing the point. Billy Magnusson steals the show with a late appearance as an agent for the Citizens Protection Unit.
I'm assuming all the hate for this movie is from Trump supporters, even though it has nothing to do him & nor is he even mentioned in the movie. I enjoyed it, a) because it's the kind of thing that I wouldn't be surprised happening in the US & b) its very reminiscent of what I've directly seen happen to families & friends over Brexit (Well apart from the CPU part of the movie)
Ok the acting is pretty naff in spots but overall, it's a good film & it keeps you on edge watching it unfold.
I wasn't expecting a great deal from this, but was pleasantly surprised. I liked the cast, and in truth this lured me in more than the storyline. I was genuinely entertained, and for a political comedy it did well. We reflected on the similarity to Brexit, and let's be honest, we need a film that adds humour to the political divide. I felt it could have been more couple-led rather than the main male lead, as actually Christina Milan could have been so much more than a supporting role - more akin to date night / game night / lovebirds in terms of equal leading roles. Overall, enjoyable and not at all predictable.
Ok, I do have to start by acknowledging that this is an extremely political movie & it does have a general feel to it of, "If you don't share our exact political views, then you're a moron... & probably evil..." But somehow, despite that, it's still a relatively decent movie. I think it would have been better if the third act (the action) had come quite a bit sooner, & I really could have done with less shoving of political views down my throat. The acting was surprisingly good, though, & I think they did manage to bring up the thoughts & emotions that they were going for. I'll give them that.
Overall, it did provoke some thought & it wasn't a complete waste of time. Oddly enough, I think the group I would recommend this to the most would actually be conservatives (like me) who don't mind their beliefs being questioned.
Did you know
- TriviaThe oath that is the basis for this movie's plot has several real precedents from U.S. history. In March 1947, President Harry S. Truman signed United States Executive Order 9835, which required U.S. government employees to swear that they were not members of any organizations that were deemed "subversive" and it authorized widespread investigations to search for "incriminating" details in government employees' pasts, including homosexuality. More commonly known as the "Truman Loyalty Order," it was largely driven by paranoia about the possibility of Soviet and other communist infiltration in government and other American institutions and is now seen as an early incident in the period known as the Red Scare. Another famous American loyalty oath was the Levering Act of 1950, a California state law that required every state employee to sign a statement attesting that they were not communists or members of any group that advocated the overthrow of the U.S. government. The University of California Board of Regents fired 31 professors (despite their tenured status) who refused to sign the oath on grounds of academic freedom and freedom of speech. The dismissals were eventually reversed by the California Supreme Court, but only after several years and lawsuits. As of 2018, several U.S. states still require their employees to sign loyalty oaths.
- GoofsWhen Chris and Alice are smoking a joint, neither inhales.
- How long is The Oath?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $401,463
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $29,077
- Oct 14, 2018
- Gross worldwide
- $403,852
- Runtime1 hour 33 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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