Bob Roberts (1992)

Tagline: Vote first. Ask questions later.

Cusack plays: Host of Cutting Edge Live.

Written, directed by and starring the talented Tim Robbins, Bob Roberts is a mockumentary of a folk singer turned conservative politician and his run for the Senate. It hits all the political buttons - corruption, slander and attempted assassination. Roberts former career means that there are plenty of catchy tunes to hum along to, and the (often dirty) campaigning through music is a nice touch. Look out also for a very fresh faced Jack Black in his first film role.

Cusack pops up for a few minutes as the guest host of Cutting Edge Live, the sketch show where tempers start to flare over the messages Roberts is putting across in his appearance. He's got a scruffy thing going on in his scenes.

True Colors (1991)

Tagline: Friendship and betrayal; Its not all black and white.
Cusack plays: Ambitious aspiring politician Peter Burton.

Oh the excitement my best friend and I felt when we discovered there was a film with two of our favourite men in it. The excitement was somewhat squished when we got round to watching it a couple of years ago. This second viewing for the Challenge provided an opportunity to take a look at why it might not have been that great.

Cusack and Spader play law students in the 1980s who then go on to political internships. Cusack, the boy from a poor background is ruthless in his pursuit of power, while Spader wants to do good by becoming a lawyer (this desire is rubbished so much it's as if he is saying his lifes desire is to work in Burger King). You would imagine that Spader would traditionally take on the bad guy role, and the swap doesn't really work that well. Nor are we given enough reasons to properly hate Cusack as his bad deeds aren't really shown on screen. However there is a fantastic/awful ski race, after Cusack confesses to bedding Spader's girlfriend. But overall, not quite as bad as I remembered.