Behind the Scenes: Trump’s Image Crafting in Biopic “The Apprentice”

Do you feel like a pawn
In your own world?
You found the system
And you lost the pearl

— Songwriter Laura Nyro “Money”

Notorious figure Roy Cohn — https://loc.getarchive.net/media/roy-m-cohn-head-and-shoulders-portrait-facing-right-world-telegram-and-sun

On a cold and rainy autumn day, my companion and I traveled over an hour to see the biopic of Donald J. Trump, The Apprentice. We passed miles and miles of trees in their red, gold, and orange glory.

Here is my review, which differs wildly from the one written by the film’s subject.

Trump called it a “politically disgusting hatchet job” made by “HUMAN SCUM” that will “hopefully bomb.”

That alone should make you want to go and see it.

There were attendees who I suspect thought the film would be a flattering portrayal of the former president and star of the long-running reality series called by the same name.

But it’s about DJT’s early journey as the one who was apprenticed. We see him come under the tutelage of the powerful, cruel, and abusive lawyer Roy Cohn.

The backdrop of the story is Manhattan in the late 70s and 80s — crime, Studio 54, the early days of rap, sex, and drugs, lots and lots of drugs. The city is corrupt, falling apart, and unable to pay its…