Television Review: Rudy: The Rudy Giuliani Story (2003)

In the summer of 2001, James Woods boarded an aeroplane and observed several suspicious figures among his fellow passengers—men who would later be revealed as terrorists rehearsing their devastating plan of Manhattan's destruction. By a curious twist of fate, Woods was subsequently cast in a film distributed in Croatia under the title September 11th, which partially examines the most significant event in modern world history. Yet behind this connection lies a far more conventional production: a routine and formulaic television biopic about Rudy Giuliani, the flamboyant and controversial New York City mayor who was about to face his most terrifying, yet ultimately most defining, day in office.

Rudy: The Rudy Giuliani Story represents perhaps the most spectacular example of how radically someone's fortunes and political perception can transform in modern America. When this television film premiered in 2003, Giuliani was still widely revered as "America's mayor," his heroic leadership during the 9/11 attacks having eclipsed years of divisive policies. The film captures this precise historical moment when public opinion almost unanimously supported the Global War on Terror and viewed Giuliani as a national symbol of resilience. Yet history would render this portrayal tragically ironic; within two decades, the same man would become an object of widespread disdain and mockery following his controversial attempts to dispute Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election.

The film's origins are particularly revealing. Its source material was Wayne Barrett's meticulously researched Rudy!: An Investigative Biography of Rudolph Giuliani, published in July 2000—before the Twin Towers fell. Barrett, an investigative reporter for The Village Voice with progressive credentials, had critically examined Giuliani's mayoral policies, yet his biography was widely regarded as nuanced and well-balanced. Had director Robert Dornhem's film been released in August 2001, it might have maintained this critical perspective. Instead, the post-9/11 context made it impossible to ignore the catastrophe that had reshaped Giuliani's legacy. The narrative structure reflects this tension: the plot is framed by events of September 11th, 2001, with Giuliani—near the end of his term—beginning the day expecting routine matters before his mind drifts into flashbacks spanning his career from 1982 onwards.

These flashbacks chronicle Giuliani's rise from ambitious US attorney prosecuting untouchable mob bosses to his improbable success as a Republican mayor in overwhelmingly Democratic New York. The film juxtaposes these professional triumphs with his messy personal life—his marriage to television host Donna Hanover (Penelope Ann Miller) and rumours of an affair with press secretary Cristyne Lategano (Michelle Nolden). These domestic scenes are intercut with dramatic reconstructions of Giuliani responding to the terrorist attacks, blending fictionalised sequences with authentic documentary footage of the World Trade Center disaster.

Critical reception was deeply polarised. While earning a Satellite Award for Best Television Film and praise from some quarters, many reviewers dismissed it as hagiographic propaganda exploiting recent trauma. Like numerous television biopics, it oversimplifies the complexities of an extraordinary life while disproportionately emphasising private drama for emotional effect. The film's most significant asset is undoubtedly James Woods' electrifying performance. As one of the very few openly right-wing actors in Hollywood, Woods portrays Giuliani with such enthusiastic conviction that it feels less like acting and more like ideological alignment. This authenticity, however, fuelled persistent allegations that Woods influenced Stanley Weiser's script to present a more sympathetic portrait of Giuliani, with writer Lionel Chetwynd—known for his conservative views and simultaneous work on the similarly hagiographic DC 9/11: Time of Crisis about George W. Bush—completing this politically charged transformation.

The film's legacy follows Giuliani's own dramatic arc. Virtually forgotten after his failed 2008 presidential bid, Rudy experienced a bizarre resurrection in November 2020 when clips circulated as internet memes among Democrats and left-wing progressives. These ironic reposts mocked Giuliani's quixotic campaign to overturn Biden's electoral victory, transforming the film from a celebration of his heroic image into a symbol of his political downfall. The very footage intended to immortalise his 9/11 leadership became ammunition against his later actions.

Rudy: The Rudy Giuliani Story ultimately stands as a fascinating historical artefact—a product of its specific post-9/11 moment that captures America's collective need for heroes amidst trauma. Yet its failure to maintain critical distance from its subject, coupled with its transparent political agenda, renders it more valuable as a case study in how popular culture processes national trauma than as genuine biography. In the end, the film's most enduring quality isn't its portrayal of a mayor at his finest hour, but its unwitting documentation of how quickly the pedestal beneath a public figure can crumble—a truth that resonates far more powerfully today than when the credits first rolled in 2003.

RATING: 6/10 (++)

Blog in Croatian

Blog in English
InLeo blog

LeoDex:

Hiveonboard:
InLeo:
Rising Star game:
1Inch:

BTC donations: 1EWxiMiP6iiG9rger3NuUSd6HByaxQWafG
ETH donations: 0xB305F144323b99e6f8b1d66f5D7DE78B498C32A7
BCH donations: qpvxw0jax79lhmvlgcldkzpqanf03r9cjv8y6gtmk9