ADAMS: “The Apprentice” vs. Angel Studios: What Happens When Actual Filmmakers Give a Shit
Sebastian Stan as young Donald Trump in The Apprentice (2024), lit dramatically in a tense, moody, retro-styled setting. Photo credit: ScreenRant
Last night, I watched The Apprentice on Blu-ray. Not some janky screener or a pixelated torrent, the real thing, legally bought, because I believe in supporting actual artists when they make art worth watching. And let me be completely honest with you: The Apprentice is one of the best films I've seen in years. Full stop.
It's bold. It's stylistically unique. It says something real and unflinching, and it says it with craft. The cinematography? Stunning. They made it look like it came out in the '70s, not just through filters or aspect ratios, but in how it moves, how it lingers, how it breathes. It's cinema.
This is easily the best performance of Sebastian Stan's career. The range on display here is ridiculous. He doesn’t just “play” Trump—he embodies him without falling into caricature. It's magnetic and unsettling. But what impressed me most wasn't just the aesthetics or the performances; it was the audacity.
