听 User Rating 
"Primary Colors" is a gripping drama edged with sly humour. And while it represents a battle for power, it is based not on action but on wordplay and who can wield it best to become the most powerful man on earth.
Events start during the Democratic Presidential Primaries where the young and impressionable Henry Burton (Adrian Lester) is roped in to run the campaign for candidate Jack Stanton (John Travolta). He's not so much asked as whisked into the hurricane that is the non-stop meet-and-greet whistle-stop Jack Stanton tour machine.
Burton's doubts about taking on the campaign soon evaporate as Stanton's gift for reaching out to the ordinary voter becomes very evident. He feels that he sees genuine good in the man and is every bit as charmed as those Stanton meets. But once he's too involved in the campaign to quit, Burton starts becoming aware that Stanton's inability to quell his sexual desires will come to haunt the race for election.
Mike Nichols' superb direction brings out the most in an absorbing and clever script (based on the book by a former Clinton aide). But the man who makes it all so believable is Travolta as Stanton. He is so utterly charming, witty, and so frighteningly sincere that even the most mawkish of his encounters with the electorate is totally believable.
While he turns out to be arguably despicable, he is far too charismatic for the audience or his campaign team to want to see him fail. It guarantees a captivating experience that is utterly fascinating to watch and gives the superb supporting cast so much to explore.
