Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes in The Final Year (Magnolia Pictures)

The Final Year is a heartfelt yet somewhat hallow, backstage snippet on the final days of the Obama presidency. If there’s any big takeaway from the film, it’s that Obama continues to be a sympathetic character. Even those who deride his politics must admit the guy carries a certain swagger and cool self-awareness atypical of many of our previous dry, stolid commanders in chief (discounting the very un-self-aware George W. Bush). In this sense, the documentary is very much about our last year of having a president who could, at the very least, shake hands like a normal, sentient being; go a night without tweeting outrageous, often racist, diatribes; or carry a conversation that wouldn’t be invariably about himself.

It evokes a sense of misguided nostalgia. Filmed like a slick behind-the-scenes campaign ad, the film is narrow in its perspective, blindly accepting the tenants of Obama’s foreign policy without the need to interview opposing voices, such as that of the international Muslim community, to weigh in on his ever-expanding and deadly use of drone strikes in the fight against ISIS, which has led to massive civilian casualties in recent years.

It’s almost a bit too nostalgic, as if the years of Obama were unencumbered with contradictions and policy mishaps of their own, some of which were a consequence of a political career incapable of detaching itself from big money and Wall Street executives. The film is more an approbatory fan video than a work that seeks to challenge, call to action, or even question. In this way, it offers nothing new beyond truisms and slogans.

Still, there are some compelling figures in this saga, the most memorable of which is U.S Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power. Her tired eyes, calm demeanor, and reassuring presence cast her in an angelic light. She tries her best to never become detached to those around her. She is filmed talking to family members of Nigerian schoolgirls, who were kidnapped by the terrorist group Boko Haram, which serves as one of the film’s most touching moments. Power forces herself to look each victim in the eyes, as they cry for their lost loved ones. The scene renders the former ambassador as benevolent in her political intentions.

Indeed, The Final Year did, overall, appear sincere. It is truly gut wrenching to watch as the confidence and hopefulness of Obama’s staff melts into glowering terror as the 2016 presidential election results come rolling in. Through the film’s inclusion of this somber, unforseen moment, the audience can relate to the utter speechlessness of former Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes. When asked for a reaction moments after Trump’s win, Rhodes spends almost a full minute trying to cohere any semblance of words. It’s a noteworthy moment, and a potentially historic piece of footage for the archives.