The Last Republican follows soon-to-be-retiring Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger in his final months as he put country over party.

If audiences have to take just one thing away from watching Steve Pink’s new documentary on the former Illinois congressman, let it me this statement delivered during the January 6 hearing on Thursday, July 21, 2022:

“Whatever your politics, whatever you think about the outcome of the election, we as Americans must all agree on this: Donald Trump’s conduct on January 6 was a supreme violation of his oath of office and a complete dereliction of his duty to our nation. It is a stain on our history. It is a dishonor to all those who have sacrificed and died in service of our democracy….Oaths matter. Character matters. Truth matters. If we do not renew our faith and commitment to these principles, this great experiment of ours, this shining beacon on a hill, will not endure.”

I’ve had an interest in American politics since the 1990s and developed a bigger interest when Vice President Al Gore selected Senator Joe Lieberman as his running mate on August 7, 2000. My interest in American history came well before that. All that is to say: there’s a reason why this film piqued my interest upon TIFF selecting it for this year’s program. It cannot come at a more defining moment in American history. If the late President John F. Kennedy were to write Profiles in Courage again today, he could very well write about former congressman Adam Kinzinger. Kinzinger and former congresswoman Liz Cheney both displayed real profiles in courage when they voted to impeach Donald J. Trump for incitement and subsequently took seats on non-partisan Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol.

This film shows what it looks like to have a civil discourse. Both Kinzinger and director Steve Pink are ideological opposites. It isn’t the first time that political opposites have sat together on camera (okay, one is just behind) and it won’t be the last. I know from personal experience. I once welcomed then-Kentucky Secretary of State Trey Grayson as a guest on my Daily Show-esque show on campus in April 2005. He announced live (tape-delayed when aired) on camera that he was running for re-election. It was only a few months earlier when he walked up to me while I was manning the College Democrats table. It is a gesture that I have not forgotten.

“I think it’s not about a political view. It’s about turning against everything you’ve ever belonged to because of some red line that you can’t cross.”

Kinzinger is not wrong. American democracy is important. January 6 was the result of a former president unable to accept defeat and incited his followers to an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. It was one of the darkest days in American history. When history books discuss Trump, he will go down as one of the single worst presidents in American history. Worse than Richard Nixon, Franklin Pierce, Andrew Johnson, and dare I even say it, James Buchanan. In fact, American Political Science Association members have ranked Trump last in their 2024 rankings. Trump finished in the bottom five in the Siena College Research Institute’s 2022 rankings. And yet, he could land in office once again. He shouldn’t and it is up to American voters to prevent him from doing so.

Steve Pink is not the filmmaker that anyone thinks about when they think about Kinzinger. This is going to change going forward. Oh yeah, this film delivers on humor in the same way as Pink’s previous films. That’s just the nature of the editing. The two are link apples and oranges and it comes through in the opening moments alone. The film’s opening sets the tone. As Steve comments early on, “Normally, I’d want nothing to do with you.” I feel the same way but Kinzinger standing up to Trump is what changed things. He was the first to invoke the 25th amendment after January 6. He paid for it dearly through Illinois redistricting.

If not for “cinematic masterpiece” Hot Tub Time Machine, another filmmaker could have gotten the job of following Kinzinger around during his final term in office. The resulting film delivers insights into the hearings while taking us inside Kinzinger’s mind. What was it that would lead a Republican to call out other Republicans? It turns out to be a love of American democracy and wanting to preserve it. Another fun fact: Kinzinger never had any intention of being on the committee but he said he would serve if Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi asked.

A few days before the attack, Kinzinger spoke with former Congressman Kevin McCarthy for what would turn out to be the last time. If you’re wondering, no, McCarthy does not survive the film with anywhere close to a positive look. Both McCarthy and McConnell delivering blistering speeches condemning Trump in the aftermath of January 6. Unfortunately, they sure aren’t doing anything to prevent another Trump administration. The fact that Kinzinger joined a number of Republicans in endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris for President and addressed the 2024 Democratic National Convention tells you where he stands on American democracy.

The Last Republican might not be the October surprise but shows what can happen when people have civil conversations and why American democracy is important. It’s unlikely to find distribution ahead of Election Day. However, one can hope that the Media Courthouse Documentary Collective will consider a YouTube release. It needs as many eyeballs as possible. Seriously. Sadly, none are likely to come from Fox News viewers and those are the eyeballs that really need to watch and hear what Adam Kinzinger has to say!

DIRECTOR: Steve Pink
FEATURING: Adam Kinzinger, Sofia Kinzinger, Austin Weatherford, Maura Gillespie, Rus Kinzinger, Betty Jo Kinzinger, Chalise Slowik, Paul Laurie, Andrew Regaldo, Luke Sandling, Sophia Gottlick, Michael Mansour, Emily Hayes, Anna Brooks Reed

The Last Republican holds its world premiere during the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival in the TIFF Docs program. Grade: 5/5

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