The Special Relationship (2010) on Netflix
Labour leader Tony Blair visits America in 1992, impressed by President Bill Clinton's policies, and uses them to reshape his party. Clinton predicts Blair will be Britain's next prime minister.
- Netflix3.4/5
- IMDb6.7/105,295 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes83%
Trailer
Plot summary
Tony Blair, who leads Britain's Labour Party, travels to America in 1992, where the policies of President Bill Clinton impress him, and he brings them home to remake his party. An invitation two years later takes him back for an audience with the president, who predicts that Blair will become Britain's next prime minister. That meeting begins the partnership between the two men, with Clinton the senior partner and Blair seeking his advice on Northern Ireland. Jonathan Powell, Blair's chief of staff, works on the Northern Ireland peace process that both leaders endorse. Cherie Blair and Hillary Clinton appear alongside their husbands.
Cast
Show all 20 cast
- Roarke Alexanderas Photographer (uncredited)
- Mark Barrowsas American Strategist (uncredited)
- Arthur Benjaminsas NATO Delegate (uncredited)
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Special Relationship (2010)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- To match Clinton's physique, Quaid put on 35 lb by eating McDonald's food every day, which he likened to being "a baby on a feeding schedule", and had his eyebrows trimmed and his hair greyed. He says the suit and the "Clinton wig" tipped him into character.
- Quaid had met Clinton in the late 1990s, spending a weekend at the White House, but he was not the only candidate: Russell Crowe, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Alec Baldwin and Tim Robbins were also considered, and screenwriter Morgan thought Vince Vaughn would have suited the part ten years later.
- Julianne Moore was originally cast as Hillary Clinton and was forced to quit less than two weeks before principal photography began, because of her commitments to The Kids Are All Right, which left the part to Davis.
- Morgan signed on to direct the film himself, making his debut, because Stephen Frears, who had directed The Deal and The Queen, was "Blaired out". In June 2009, shortly before filming, Morgan pulled out; his agent said he wanted to concentrate on writing and producing.
- The first drafts covered Blair's dealings with both Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. Morgan cut the Bush scenes from later drafts because he found the Blair and Clinton dynamic more interesting, which is why the story stops on 20 January 2001.
- Morgan started his research after learning that Blair and Clinton had been alone together when Al Gore conceded defeat in the 2000 presidential election. It took him to Washington, D.C., where he interviewed members of Clinton's cabinet, and to Clinton's hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas.
- David Morrissey, who played Gordon Brown in The Deal, was asked to play him again but declined because Brown appears in only one scene, so background actor Chris Wilson took the part. Monica Lewinsky was never cast at all: the film uses archive footage of her instead.
- Cinematographer Barry Ackroyd delivered two different films in post-production: a 16:9 version for HBO's American broadcast and a 2.35 widescreen one for cinemas worldwide, shooting the larger format first and then trimming it for television with a pan and scan.
