Miss Sloane brings the second amendment debate to the big screen. In doing so, Jessica Chastain delivers a strong performance. Despite the December release, it’s not a film that will be earning many accolades. This isn’t to take anything away from Chastain–after all, she delivers the goods. It just shows how strong the competition is in 2016.

Directed by John Madden from a screenplay written by Jonathan Perera, Chastain leads a cast that includes Mark Strong, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Michael Stuhlbarg, Alison Pill, Jake Lacy, Sam Waterston, and John Lithgow. It is refreshing to see Strong playing a nice guy as opposed to taking on the role of a villain.

There’s a lot that can be said about lobbying and the amount of money they spend to buy our politicians. Elizabeth Sloane (Jessica Chastain) is one of the most powerful lobbyists in Washington and her record shows it. No matter how high the cost, Sloane will cross a line if it means winning. This time, she takes on the gun lobby and toes the line very closely as she pushes the legal and ethical boundaries if it means winning.

Miss Sloane shows us the intricate workings of DC and how lobbyists are buying off politicians to secure the passage or defeat of a bill. At first, Sloane is working for Cole, Kravitz & Waterman, a lobbying firm that is headed by George Dupont (Sam Waterston). When a client comes in and asks for her aid in defeating a bill that will provide for regulations of firearms, she says no. This paves the way for her to join Peterson Wyatt, an up-and-coming firm headed by Rodolfo Schmidt (Mark Strong) to secure passage of the Heaton-Harris Bill. Her zealotry for winning shows as her career and colleagues are threatened.

Sloane is investigated by a Senate panel headed by Senator Sperling, a critic of the lobbying industry, as the gun lobby starts to become worried that the bill will be passed. They need a distraction and the investigation shows how vulnerable she is. Throughout the film’s two hours, we see a compelling and fast-paced movie. Sloane has so many tricks up her sleeve that we don’t really know what to expect next.

“You’re watching an incredible story about a woman who risks everything to win,” Chastain says. “There are twists all over the movie. Just when you think you know what’s going on, there’s a big surprise. I like movies that keep you guessing.”

Perera’s script is one that is really authentic and one would expect that he is a veteran screenwriter. He’s not. That’s what’s truly surprising.

Distributed by EuropaCorp, Miss Sloane is currently playing in New York and Los Angeles. It opens in theaters everywhere on December 9th.