Donald Trump biopic The internwho charts his early years as a real estate businessman in New York, is baffled Cannes Film Festival with its shocking scenes, including a depiction of non-consensual sex.
Ali Abbasi's new film stars Sebastian Stan as a convincingly subtle young Trump, alongside Jeremy Strong as his aggressive mentor, New York City prosecutor Roy Cohn.
Borat's Maria Bakalova rounds out the lead role as Ivana Zelníčková, whoever would become the future president of the first woman of the United States.
Many expected the film to raise eyebrows and likely stir Trump's loyal MAGA-centric fan base.
However, among a collection of shocking scenes including forceful sex, Stan's pronunciation of the word “clitoris” as Trump and gruesome surgical procedures, one of which is a shocker in the news – a scene in which Trump appears to force sex on his wife.
A film insider described the scene ahead of the premiere to Variety as “violent” and “uncomfortable,” while female filmgoers at last night's premiere also had strong reactions, calling it “gross” and “disturbing.”
The scene is undoubtedly difficult to watch and acts as a turning point in the film in which Trump has seemingly lost the humanity he initially thought he had at least a little of.
It is also based on what was sworn testimony at the time.
Trump rapes his wife Ivana
During The Apprentice, Trump is shown forcing himself on his wife during an argument.
The scene begins modestly – even amusingly – as Ivana hands her husband a book on the G-spot in an attempt to reconnect.
Trump skeptically reads a small excerpt from the book, which gives the surreal (but probably accurate) version of Trump's way of saying “clitoris” in his signature raspy, New York tones.
He then snaps, cruelly tells her that he is no longer attracted to her, and then wrestles her to the ground on her stomach as he lies on top of her.
'Is that your G-spot? Did I find it?' he then shouts as he bumps roughly into a crying Ivana.
It sounds – and is – horrible, but it's actually based on Ivana's 1990 divorce decree, in which she claimed her then-husband raped her and made her feel “violated.”
This accusation was subsequently published in Harry Hurt III's 1993 book The Last Tycoon, but Ivana later retracted the accusation in 2015, saying that she and her ex “were the best of friends.”
Ivana's “plastic t*ts” are also commented on in the scene, with Trump telling her to her face that they were a waste of money, despite it allegedly being something he asked for and paid for.
Other unexpected scenes in The Apprentice include…
Roy Cohn takes part in a gangbang
The controversial sex scene between Trump and Ivana isn't the only one in the movie – between them or someone else.
Cohn was Trump's real mentor, as seen in The Apprentice, where he molded his aggressive personality and approach to consistently claim victory (“No matter how f**ked you are, you always claim victory”).
He was also a gay man who eventually died after succumbing to AIDS – although he continually denied his sexuality and claimed he was suffering from liver cancer.
One of Trump's most despicable acts — rumored to be based on a real-life anecdote from screenwriter Gabe Sherman — shows him throwing Cohn's dying lover Russell out of his Trump Tower hotel and sending Cohn the bill.
Earlier in The Apprentice, Trump is given irrevocable proof that Cohn is homosexual when he goes upstairs to a party at his house to look for him.
He opens a door, only to find Strong's Cohn engaged in an athletic group sex session: Cohn lies on a bed with one man, while another three-person scenario plays out on a chair across the room.
Trump's alleged plastic surgery is exposed
Once again, Ivana's statement has added fuel to the fire of the procedures Trump may have undergone.
She claimed that her own surgeon supervised both liposuction and scalp reduction surgery on Trump to help correct his baldness. In the eyes of the real Trump, this taboo subject is also mentioned twice by Stan's Trump, including in a moment of confession to Cohn.
As the film progresses, Trump's infamous “commercial over” becomes increasingly apparent.
When the procedures come into play, Abbasi enjoys marveling at the grisly details of the flesh and blood.
Trump's flabby abdomen is incised with a knife, while the fat is pumped out through a tube.
Meanwhile, his scalp is also shown being incised, with a strip – with the long strands of his comb almost comically still attached – removed and placed in a metal container before his head is stapled shut. Tasteful.
The Apprentice premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on May 20. A UK release date has not yet been announced.
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