Jessica Chastain didn’t know what a lobbyist was before Miss Sloane

Elizabeth’s intermittent pill-popping could merit further exploration, and the filmmakers leave us to wonder – what was she like before her work became her life?

Most annoying is that she’s framed as a woman known for springing surprises – and there are too many to be believed – and yet with each surprise there is one of her minions there to say, “Wow, I didn’t see that coming”. And she is rather amoral, but not completely.

Heavy-handed message movies don’t come more harrumphing than “Miss Sloane”, a clunky dramatization of the gun-control argument liberals still don’t understand is being conducted exclusively among themselves. Well, it turns out to be a fine metaphor for the world around her; Miss Sloane is a smart, thorough film about a rare subject that is also as breathless, broad, and crowd-pleasing as your standard Grisham thriller. Yes, she takes on the nearly impossible and woefully underfunded job of campaigning on behalf of new gun-control legislation regarding stricter background checks for gun sales. So we watch her masterfully orchestrate her plan – à la Frank Underwood or Olivia Pope – keeping her clients, her boss, her subordinates and even us, the audience, in the dark. So that’s one moral line she won’t cross. She promises to make that woman regret it. We get to see her wear the living crap out of a series of black business suits. A bill imposing mandatory wait times is about to go to the Senate, and two lobbying firms are doing battle to sway Senators to their side. The debut screenplay by Jonathan Perera isn’t quite so imposing.

It was snappy banter from all characters involved.

Together they also unleash an appropriately cynical view of a political system that is rotten. They would have a humorous response. Her boss (Sam Waterston) is furious. A cutthroat lobbyist who uses tactics from both sides of the ethical aisle, winning is the only thing that matters to her – no matter the cost.

But even as you find yourself hoping this complicated relationship teases out more complications in both Elizabeth and Esme, you come to realize that, no, it’s actually another plot device. She’s a professional genius who pops pills to compensate for insomnia and frequents male prostitutes (notably, Jake Lacy’s Forde) to attend to her pesky sexual needs. The catch is that she has to pay for the privilege: He’s an escort. Or will this be that character screenwriters love – the hooker with a heart of gold? Miss Sloane, Liz for short, happens to be the best player in the game. Trust me, this movie will spark the ongoing conversation about gun violence that we must continue to have in this country.

I’ve been a latecomer to the Chastain bandwagon, but it’s hard to imagine this affair working without her.

The talented young actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw delivers transcendent work as a young associate at the boutique firm who has a deeply personal connection to the issue of gun violence.

The goofy electro-style score of the film didn’t work.

THE MARTIAN – Last year, she starred in Ridley Scott’s movie alongside Matt Damon, Jeff Daniels, Kristen Wiig, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Kate Mara. Indeed, the film aims to rile up moviegoers as much as entertain them, although by the end, it might not elicit more than a shrug. The problem is that it’s utterly ridiculous. Now you’re asked to forget all that stuff that made Elizabeth unpleasant and unusual, her bravado and abrasive behavior, her bad choices, and her genius for being as corrupt as the “old men” she rebukes. Yet with such fun dialogue, I was able to be entertained enough and not worry about the lack of authenticity.

2 ½ stars out of 5.