The Comey Rule

Streaming now ... Based on the former FBI director's book ... An insight into America's trauma ... A president hell-bent on suborning the bureau to his will ... A mafioso in the White House ... Hillary's emails and the 2016 election ... The Russia investigation ... Everyone is compromised ... Miss Lumière dips her toe into the swamp 

Po-faced patriotism aside, The Comey Rule (now streaming on Stan) makes quite a rich meal of recent US politics.

Sometimes, so rich, it threatens to become indigestible, or worse, nauseating, particularly for those unacquainted with former FBI director James Comey's 2018 memoir, A Higher Loyalty.

Loftily pitched (especially in relation to his own impeccable morals) Comey's book recounts his unfortunate investigation into Hillary Clinton's supposedly dangerous use of a private email server while she was Secretary of State, and later, his fortunate (but not for him) investigation into Russian complicity in Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign.

Luckily Miss Lumière has long harboured a morbid fascination with the decline of western civilisation - and US politics of the last four years is perfect fare.

In The Comey Rule, which stars Jeff Daniels as Comey, we have all the juicy detail any US political junkie could want - full of intrigue, manipulation, bullying, and corruption, all stirred together with a liberal dash of high mindedness and corn syrup.

While this is very clearly Comey as hero of his own righteous story, the plot is in every sense thickened by real events.

Writer/director of this two part, four hour miniseries, Billy Ray (The Hunger Games, Captain Phillips) wears his big 'ole "Truth, Justice and the American Way" heart on his sleeve, while mercifully employing some sharp verbatim dialogue and real news footage.

Comey, a fastidious note-taker (and careful political animal) apparently recorded all of his conversations with key players and stored them in a safe at FBI headquarters.

These meticulous recollections work well in several pivotal scenes, especially in a creepy private dinner at the White House with the bouffant-blonde president.

Trump (a not altogether successful portrayal by Irish actor Brendan Gleeson) is trying to "charm" Comey into making a public statement that allegations he was compromised by the Russians (specifically prostitutes and golden showers in a Moscow hotel) were untrue.

Trump: "The point is, I need loyalty. I expect loyalty."

Comey: "You will always get honesty from me." 

Trump: "That's what I want! Honest loyalty!" 

It's a chilling portrait of Trump as a bullying small-time Mafioso who unexpectedly finds himself at the head of the table.

He comes across as mad, bad and dangerous to know (but without the poetry). What's new?

Gleeson gets the mannerisms, but not the man, which is surprising given he is such a fine actor. 

Perhaps Trump is simply too much for anyone. 

Daniels seems to have Comey's measure, albeit a rather hokey one, but that's largely the fault of a star-spangled script. 

Holly Hunter does a terrific turn as tough-talking Obama appointed deputy attorney general Sally Yates (fired by Trump).

Michael Kelly, who played ruthless sidekick Doug to Kevin Spacey's Frank Underwood in the American version of House of Cards, is again convincing as Comey's deputy, Andrew McCabe (another Trump fire-ee). 

And Scoot McNairy more than gives former deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein (who authored a damning memo about Comey) his slimy, backstabbing dues. 

As we know, Comey's refusal to become another arm of Trump's dark empire resulted in his inevitable firing, on Fox News of course. 

The rest is history. Or is it? 

As an FBI colleague says to Comey halfway through the second episode: 

"Have you ever seen any evidence that he [Trump] respects the rule of law?

Comey: "None."