Jon Stewart is best known as the long-time host of American news satire program The Daily Show.
But the talented writer has also been involved with movies for years, with roles in 90s films like The Faculty and Big Daddy, and more recently behind the scenes as a director.
Following on from his 2014 directorial debut Rosewater is Stewart's latest flick, Irresistible. Led by Steve Carell (Vice) and Aussie actress Rose Byrne (Peter Rabbit), Irresistible is a biting and hilarious political satire which transports all the underhanded and amoral dealings of political campaigning from Washington to a small-town mayoral election.
The movie opens with retired Marine Jack Hastings (Chris Cooper, Little Women) delivering an impassioned speech before his local council, calling for better treatment of his town's most vulnerable and lamenting the loss of values.
Soon enough video of Hastings' speech makes its way to the office of Democratic strategist Garry Zimmer (Carell), who decides the small-town hero is exactly what the party needs to attract more conservative-minded voters.
Zimmer decides to throw the party's weight behind Hastings' campaign for mayor and heads to his little town of Deerlaken, where everyone knows everyone and is excited to see some new blood in the town. But his move attracts the attention of the Republicans, who send his counterpart - Faith Brewster (Byrne) - run the incumbent mayor's campaign.
Irresistible mixes all the best parts of the city-folk-in-a-small-town trope (think For Richer or Poorer, The Proposal) with the ridiculousness of high-stakes politics to great effect. There are some truly hilarious moments and Carell is beyond perfect casting for the lead role.
Stewart also portrays the people from both parties as kind of terrible, instead focussing his critical gaze on the nature of donations-driven politics, and just how fraught with danger that is.
If you're into American politics, there's lots to enjoy here. But even if you wouldn't know a Republican from a Democrat, there's still plenty of jokes and great performances to get you through the movie. Also stars Topher Grace, Mackenzie Davis and Natasha Lyonne.