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âWe hang our faith on objects, on people, based on the signs that they put out,â the New Yorker staff writer Vinson Cunningham tells David Remnick, about the enormous hope that he and many others saw in Barack Obama during his first Presidential campaign. Although Cunningham aspired to be a writer, he got swept up in this historic campaign, working on Obamaâs 2008 long-shot run for the Presidency, and later worked in his White House. Cunninghamâs adventures on the trail inspire his first novel, an autobiographical coming-of-age story modestly titled âGreat Expectations.â Now he wishes that the former President were playing a larger role. âI will admit that it has been dispiriting,â in Obamaâs post-Presidential life, âto see him making movies and being on Jet Skis as the world burns. . . . more like a movie star than someone whose great hope is to change the world.â Plus, David Remnick talks with Bradley Cooper, who directed, co-wrote, and stars in âMaestro.â The film is nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and Best Actor for Cooper in his portrayal of the conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein. Cooper says that conducting an actual orchestra in the role of Bernstein was âthe scariest thing Iâve ever done, hands down.â
In âGreat Expectations,â Vinson Cunningham Watches Barack Obamaâs Rise Up Close
The journalistâs autobiographical novel reflects his time working on Barack Obamaâs campaign, and in his White House. Has the former President lived up to his expectations?
Bradley Cooper Contends for Best Actor in âMaestroâ
The writer-director tells David Remnick that conducting an actual orchestra, in the role of Leonard Bernstein, was âthe scariest thing Iâve ever done, hands down.â
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