The Program

2015 "Champion. Hero. Legend. Cheat."
6.5| 1h43m| PG-13| en
Details

An Irish sports journalist becomes convinced that Lance Armstrong's performances during the Tour de France victories are fueled by banned substances. With this conviction, he starts hunting for evidence that will expose Armstrong.

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Reviews

Humaira Grant It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.
Arianna Moses Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.
Lucia Ayala It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.
Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.
witster18 Foster is solid in the lead role here, and it's nice that we get to see all the shots of Lance doping that we never got to see before, even if it's not real.Those two aspects give the film a little edge, but not much else does.The racing sequences are a total loss. A mix mash of real footage, that looks like grainy real footage, and not Foster, and then there's the film footage which has zero style. THere's nothing interesting at all about the racing sequences. Also, the film really leaves out some of the juicy stuff. Wanted to see more from those that threw him under the bus. The Wife(betsy?), and our co-star journalists' story is practically empty. The film, imo, just fails to capitalize on so much here. It's not a bad film by any means, but it's not a good one either. Frears has really been going downhil for a while now. I keep going-in thinking I'm going to get a fresh version of "The Hit" or "Grifters" and I keep coming out with some really mediocre films. If not terrible(see:Lay the Favorite). The Queen was decent( a bit overrated though). Philomena was alright. The last one I really liked from him was "High Fidelity", and that was 16 years ago."The Program" has as many problems and glaring omissions as it does positive qualities. Foster is good. Nice to see all the needles and blood. But, I was afraid I was going to get what I got, which was a film that really suffers next to the brilliant documentary, "Lance Armstrong:Stop at Nothing". I give that one an 8.5, and this a 5/10.Even though Foster did a good job and looks a lot like Lance in the face - his build really doesn't fit the part at any time, even with the physical changes he made throughout the film. That's a minor quip though, as the major quips are just not capitalizing on so many of the other characters who were seriously involved in this downfall, and not making the film 'exciting' in any way whatsoever. Making this about the journalist, and then not developing that character AT ALL.
eddie_baggins The life and times of bike racing legend turned exposed drug cheat extraordinaire Lance Armstrong will forever and a day make for an intriguing and shocking story and while Philomena and The Queen director Stephen Frear's feature exploring the 'program' that Armstrong and his racing team developed to systematically rout the system is insightful, it's still a rather cold and strangely structured piece that gets us no closer to knowing who Armstrong really was or what made him into the figure he is today.Those seeking an Armstrong biopic will be left sorely disappointed by The Program, as its main goals are signposted early by throwing the viewer headfirst into Armstrong's later life as an up and coming racer, a cancer survivor and eventually a superstar of the sport that he became a household name for his achievements and then a name that will tarnish the racing industry for the foreseeable future.Frear's bases his tale on Irish reporter David Walsh's book who is here played by the impressive Chris O'Dowd and that books focus clearly drives The Program to be almost entirely centred around what went on behind closed doors (or caravan doors) with Armstrong and his crew but it's the films sporadically used racing scenes that really get the heart going and it would've been great for the film to be a little more 'cinematic' in its ambitions, it would've likely helped the films causes upon release to in what was a very lacklustre run at cinemas despite the interest in the Armstrong story and Ben Foster's impressive central display as Armstrong.A long time student of supporting roles (his turns in 3:10 to Yuma and Lone Survivor are highlights) and the odd lead, it's great to see Foster cast in such a high profile role and looking past his uncanny resemblance to Armstrong, Foster's turn is full of physical and mental commitment. It's not an easy role, Armstrong comes across as a totally unlikeable and self-obsessed creation (watch as Armstrong sheds tears at placing third on the podium) and Foster doesn't hold back from the narcissistic creation that the racing superstar no doubt was and probably still is today, despite his great work for cancer research the world over.The Program is a watchable and proficiently made examination of a certain aspect of Armstrong's life and also the shadowy dealings of the racing industry but it never really reaches a great height considering the materials at its disposals and its inability to get down to what made Armstrong tick is considerably infuriating, despite Fosters winning performance.3 blood bags out of 5
kosmasp It's not a literal wave of course and I only knew little things of what is revealed in this movie. I also thought this was going to be a documentary about Lance Armstrong, but it's a feature film and a really good one at that. You can feel the suspense and while I'm not sure if a couple of things have been changed for dramatic purposes, I do know that there was a lot going on there. And Chris O'Dowd character had to fight against a lot of things and people from the start.We do know how and where it ends, but the way there is amazing, but also makes you feel numb at times. It's incredible what happened and what things occurred in plain sight. And still there is more to Armstrong then just a simple bad guy ... And the portrayal is amazing!
elle_kittyca I was a bit surprised to see this biopic had a rating of 6.5 after I watched it. I find most IMDb reviews far too generous, but in my opinion, this rating was about right.its a solid bio-pic that tells an interesting story of a cheater and his downfall. I am generally not very interested in sports, but I do like true stories of people and their weakness, and Armstong is a flawed character, who even in disgrace and failure never seemed able to really grasp the enormity of his flaws. The movie was coherent, well scripted, an d reasonably acted. and I've looked at the reviews that have marked it lower than that, and most of them complain that its is not as powerful in the end as it should be. I guess, to some extent, I can see where they are coming from. Who can argue that the the level of dishonesty displayed by this man should have ended in a total downfall of heart-wrenching magnitude? Like Armstrong (eventually), the movie tells it like it is and doesn't contemplate the full enormity of the situation for dramatic effect.