The Program

2015 "Champion. Hero. Legend. Cheat."
6.5| 1h43m| PG-13| en| More Info
Released: 08 October 2015 Released
Producted By: StudioCanal
Country: United Kingdom
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Synopsis

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

Hellen I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much
Forumrxes Yo, there's no way for me to review this film without saying, take your *insert ethnicity + "ass" here* to see this film,like now. You have to see it in order to know what you're really messing with.
Calum Hutton It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...
Zlatica One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.
peterrichboy I have been really surprised by the number of negative reviews of this movie. I've never really been a fan of cycling or the Tour De France, but I was always fascinated in how Lance Armstrong was able to cheat his way to 7 tour victories. And I think Stephen Frears has done a superb job of explaining the lengths Armstrong and his team mates went to,to beat the testers. Ben Foster is superb as Armstrong to the point I almost felt it was him, whilst Chris O Dowd is equally believable as the much maligned journalist who always new the truth. One of the best sports movies in recent memory 8/10
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.
Tony Heck "If we keep cheering loud enough maybe it will go away and no one will ever hear the unwelcome question. Is this real, or is it dope?" Lance Armstrong (Foster) is the greatest cyclist in history. He wins the Tour de France year after year and has become the poster boy for the sport. Everyone loves him and is inspired by him and what he stands for. David Walsh (O'Dowd) begins to wonder how he wins so easily and suspects that it isn't legit. This is a story that everyone knows the basics of. What I didn't know was how early he was suspected, and how everyone wanted to hide it and not talk about it. Walsh really took heat for suggesting what was happening but stuck with it. Armstrong was as smooth as he could be in dodging and deflecting the questions about his use. I actually liked this movie a lot more than I expected to and even though it didn't really drop any bombshells it is still interesting and very much worth seeing. Overall, a movie that is entertaining and very much worth seeing even though everyone knows what happened. I actually recommend this. I give this a B.
hallesofiax3 If you haven't seen this, all I have to say is wow. The performances by every single actor were absolutely phenomenal. Ben Foster as Lance Armstrong was an amazing casting choice - he had me hating him throughout the entire movie. Even the people who played smaller more supporting roles were integral in this film, and made it so great to watch.If you haven't yet seen this, make a point of doing it as soon as possible. I already knew about Lance Armstong's doping story from what we have all heard on the news, but The Program really provided a much more in-depth analysis of the chain of events and those involved in both sides of the controversy.