One of the stranger cinematic career developments is Adam McKay's emergence as a multiple Oscar-nominated director. Previously responsible for the fabulous comedies Anchorman, Step Brothers and The Other Guys, he produced the brilliant, rage-inducing The Big Short, and thus made his next foray into political cinema with a film I was eager to watch.

Vice chronicles Dick Cheney's rise from a bumbling drunk through US right-wing politics to the mantle of Vice President. In that time he reshaped the presidency, extracting huge powers for himself and setting terrifying precedents for the world we find ourselves in today.

By now you will have seen pictures and clips of Christian Bale's remarkable (latex assisted) transformation to play Cheney. The one-time Batman completely changes his physicality for the role, successful managing to emulate the politician's distinctive way of speaking. It is a brilliant performance in a career filled with them, and has been rightfully lauded. And yet what is remarkable about Vice is the sheer amount of talent that feels wasted. Outside of Bale, few of the actors manage to break through. Early on Amy Adams impresses as Cheney's wife, whilst Alison Pill has a touching story line as his daughter, whose sexual orientation proves a potential liability. But scene after scene passes where the usually impressive talents of Steve Carell, Sam Rockwell and Eddie Marsan, to name a few, go unused. It is one of the numerous frustrating qualities of McKay's film.

Vice frustratingly straddles being a respectful biopic and a gripping expose of political crimes committed behind closed doors. It satisfies as neither. As a biopic, rarely does it feel like Cheney's life is worthy of such attention. Occasional narrative strands burst into view, before slinking back into the background. And as an expose, it feels simultaneously too sprawling and too narrow. A political life like Cheney's sees so many political scandals that Vice can only offer the broad strokes. This makes it ineffective as an expose. What made The Big Short so compelling was its ability to package complicated banking practices into digestible chunks, leaving audiences with a clear sense of what to be angry about. Vice doesn't manage this, and its anger feels devoid of direction. This isn't helped by McKay's hyperactive style that has worked so well in the past, but here feels flippant and misjudged.

I couldn't help but find Vice a frustrating cinematic experience. There is so much content that, at times, the film rushes through proceedings, acting like a Wikipedia entry. The Bush presidency feels like a point where the film should focus, looking at the terrible actions taken by Cheney as VP. And yet McKay takes on too much, so that the only thing that truly breaks through is further evidence of how brilliant an actor Christian Bale is.

I was about halfway through Vice when it dawned on me that unless I was careful, this entire review would devolve into nothing but comparisons between this film and The Big Short. If you went into Vice not already knowing that the two films share the same writer and director (Adam McKay), then their extreme similarity in style, subject matter and tone should be enough to tip you off. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing: I thoroughly enjoyed The Big Short’s blend of fast paced humour and crushing nihilistic dread, so it was practically a forgone conclusion that I’d like Vice as well.

Vice tells the (mostly) true story of former vice president Dick Cheney (Christian Bale). It opens in 1963, with Cheney being arrested for drunk driving. The next scene jumps 40 years to 9/11, with Cheney as the central authority in a room of White House officials attempting to develop a response to the attacks. So how did this apparent no-hoper transform himself into the most powerful Vice President in history? And now that he’s gained the position, how will he use it?

The most commendable element of the film is without a doubt the cast. Much has been made of the fact that Bale gained 40 pounds to play Cheney, and whilst that is impressive (and perhaps somewhat concerning) it would ultimately be irrelevant if his acting wasn’t up to snuff. Fortunately, it is. Bale presents Cheney as a quiet yet formidable figure and delivers a captivating performance during every scene he’s in. While Bale’s performance is impressive, the remainder of the cast are equally deserving of praise. Steve Carell and Sam Rockwell are both extremely entertaining as the witty but ruthless Donald Rumsfeld and the easily manipulated George W Bush respectively. Meanwhile, Amy Adams plays Lynne Cheney effectively as a Lady Macbeth-type figure (a comparison made even more obvious during a particularly bizarre fourth wall break where she and Bale transition into Shakespearean verse).

Still, this is not a film carried on acting alone. Adam McKay has crafted a tight script that utilizes humour and a lightness of touch to make many of its horrifying political revelations somewhat more palatable. McKay also uses imagery effectively, such as the image of a fishhook being reeled in, to emphasize the importance of certain scenes whilst also providing some insight into the thought process of the enigma that is Dick Cheney. Unfortunately, perhaps the weakest aspect of the film stems from just what an enigma the real Cheney is. The film explicitly warns us during the opening that he was so secretive that many of the events portrayed in the film just aren’t known for certain and (it’s implied) are partially the result of conjecture. The result is that whilst I was thoroughly engaged by Bale’s performance, I never felt able to truly engage with Cheney, since many details concerning his life felt left out, or occasionally even slightly altered.

Whilst Vice feels perhaps somewhat less of a complete experience than The Big Short, it’s still worth your time. The acting is excellent, the dialogue is sharp and chances are, you will still leave the cinema entertained and carrying a sense of nihilistic dread.