It’d be funny if it weren’t so sad. It’d be outlandish if it weren’t quite so close to the truth. It’d be a comedy if it weren’t quite so serious. Whatever else it may be, Barry Levinson’s new movie, Man of the Year is certainly worth checking out. The movie isn’t always as funny as it might be, and it doesn’t always work as a thriller (which it turns into), but it certainly provides ample material to chew on.
The basic premise is that Tom Dobbs (Robin Williams), the host of a political-based comedy show a la The Daily Show with Jon Stewart or Real Time with Bill Maher decides to run for President. This takes place just as a computer company has secured the rights to provide electronic voting machines for every polling station in the country for the upcoming election. One of the employees there, Eleanor Green (Laura Linney), notices an irregularity in the software and attempts to report it to the company’s president. In order to not hurt stock prices, the memo is buried and Green is told any irregularities have been fixed. They of course haven’t, and as a result of the computer glitch, Dobbs is elected President. The rest of the movie deals with Green trying to fix the problem, going to Dobbs for help, as her company tries to first discredit, and subsequently eliminate, her.
The film is a slightly-skewed mirror-image of reality. People have started wearing t-shirts and putting bumper stickers on their cars promoting Jon Stewart for President in 2008. Stewart has said he won’t run, and that the entire notion is silly, but what would happen if he did?
Tellingly, the two major party candidates that Dobbs runs against are named Kellogg and Mills (as in General). They have all the substance and gravitas of breakfast cereal and as candidates should be taken as such. Of course, they're not terribly different from the candidates we see all the time. Like real candidates, they are easy targets, and the film makes the most of them.
Article comments
1 - Sterfish
It's interesting that you bring up that the movie turns into a thriller because the commercials don't give the notion that this movie will be anything other than a comedy. Once word gets around about the shift, I wonder if it will end up hurting the film or not.
2 - Jet in Columbus
Nicely done TVAG. I've been curious about this film. Concern over what label to put on it though may be unfounded as Robin Williams does drama as well as he does comedy, in some cases better.
3 - TV and Film Guy
Sterfish, you're right, the commercials don't at all do justice to what the film is actually about. It looks from them that the entire movie is about him running for election, whereas that's only half of it.
Jet, Williams absolutely does both well, it's just interesting to me that this movie is both (and certainly not being marketed as such).
4 - BS
"...hydrogen fueled vehicles since that would effectively destroy the oil companies which have supported the candidate financially. It’s a smart point..."
This is a politically biased review. I could point out lots of examples but the above is one. Who do you think will sell the hydrogen. That's right: Shell, Exon, etc.
"Smart point"? hardly, things like this in a movie (or a review) just make me mad.
5 - TV and Film Guy
I'm sorry if you feel that way. I do my utmost to keep any personal political, religious, and other unwarranted views out of any piece like this.
I do however, respectfully, disagree with your opinion here. The big oil companies have shown little to no desire to search out alternative fuels, so I don't think that statement is slanted.
6 - Jet in Columbus
Hove you noticed that as the right-wing feels more and more vulnerable they seem to lash out at shadows that aren't there? Even in movie reviews?
7 - DJRadiohead
Because the "left" has been so calm and reasonable, too... boogie man politics... I sometimes wonder why I still bother to vote.
8 - BS
"...I do however, respectfully, disagree with your opinion here. The big oil companies have shown little to no desire to search out alternative fuels, so I don't think that statement is slanted..."
It's simple economics. Who is going to buy the alternative fuel (say hydrogen) that Shell develops and modifies all their stations in order to sell. All those folks driving hydrogen cars? I don't think so. And let me remind you before you make another mistake...Shell does not make cars....
Sheesh
9 - Jet in Columbus
Well as this movie points out, Republifuck-owned Diebold owns the voting machines anyway so why bother?
10 - BS
OK, if I must....these are examples of politically biased opinions that do not deserve to be an a movie review:
"..Our society is becoming more and more disenchanted with our politicians and their actions, but things seem to only be getting worse..."
(only if you are a poor student of US history)
"...Special interest groups show no signs of going away..."
(they aren't suppose to, everyone is supposed to work in their own best interest and we strive for compromise and balance of powers)
"...Corporate dishonesty and fraud seem omnipresent..."
(I would argue that most of the large corporations in the world are remarkably honest with extensive guidelines about corporate behavior. For every one in the news look at the hundreds (thousands?) that arent. Of course, if you are an anti-corporate leftist then you might disagree....oh you did)
What if someone that wasn't beholden to anyone else was elected President?
(good luck finding that person..this is called a 'strawman' in arguments)
What if someone that had the guts to do the right thing and help the people of the world was elected?
(it is not the job of the President of the US to help the people of world! Read the job description)
What if Jon Stewart did run for President, would that really be a bad thing?
(Jon Stewart is a rather shallow comedian that makes good jokes by simplifying things and ignoring inconvenient facts or complexity)
11 - TV and Film Guy
BS...
I'm not quite sure what you think of me, contemplating that I might reply that Shell makes vehicles. I'm actually slightly, more intelligent than that.
You of course have only started to put forth a chicken & egg argument: there aren't many hydrogen fueling stations because there are no vehicles. Would we have approached this from the other side you would undoubtedly have said that they don't make vehicles because you can't get fuel or that the demand isn't there (presumably because people are smart enough to realize you can't get fuel).
The movie itself never states which candidate (as far as I could tell) is from which party. Why do you automatically assume that it was the Republican candidate that was in the pocket of the oil companies? Maybe you're the one showing a bias here. The Dems are just as guilty of taking contributions from special interest groups and owing favors down the line.
12 - TV and Film Guy
How is it politically biased to state that special interest groups show no signs of going away? They work on both parties equally. And the movie actually asks these questions and so I pose these questions. I tell you about the movie and its views and what it states and ask the questions it asks and I am therefore bias? Really?
13 - Ty
I am surprised you all commented on this review and not the other review for this film.
I HATE movies that try to make you think it is a comedy, when it is actually serious garbage.
Basically everyone I know who wants to see this movie says "Yeah I want to see it, it looks funny." But the reviews suggest that you see all the funny parts in the trailer and the movie is a stupid thriller.
I remember when a Drew Barrymore movie came out, "Riding in Cars with Boys." The trailer and TV spots made it out to be a comedy, but it turned out to be a serious comedy. Even the funny parts from the ads weren't funny when you saw them as part of the film.
I think a lot of people are going to be disappointed with Man of the Year (and they should be!), but the producers won't care because they'll get that first weekend big box office numbers because "it looks funny."
14 - TV and Film Guy
I wouldn't say I hate it, but it certainly is a misleading marketing campaign.
15 - DJRadiohead
Republifuck... Jet, that is the kind of insipid, inane rhetoric that is destroying political discussion. It also undermines a person's credibility.
16 - TV and Film Guy
Let's try to keep the discussion clean folks.
I really do believe though that the film doesn't come down against Democratics or Republicans. It pushes the view that they are both wrong, equally.
17 - Sylvia Muffaleto
"(it is not the job of the President of the US to help the people of world! Read the job description)"
BS, someone should tell Bush that. Aren't we helping to install a democracy in Iraq? If he were a real conservative, we wouldn't be there.
"(Jon Stewart is a rather shallow comedian that makes good jokes by simplifying things and ignoring inconvenient facts or complexity)"
That's not a good point because Bush is a rather shallow businessman that makes poor jokes and who ignores inconvenient facts and complexity and he was elected.
PS It looks like a boring movie
18 - TV and Film Guy
Sylvia, all good points. I'm sure they are arguable, but makes sense to me.