Universal Pictures Starring: Robin Williams, Christopher Walken, Laura Linney
Directed By: Barry Levinson
Rated: PG-13
Universal Pictures
You would think I would have learned my lesson by now: never, ever go into a movie expecting big things. When I saw the trailer for Man of the Year a month or two ago, I couldn't wait to see it. I jumped on it the first weekend despite the fact that the critics were panning it (because, as you know, I just don't care what the critics think). This is one time I should have listened to the critics. And to my friends Geoff and Leah, who tried to get me to go with them to a karaoke bar instead.
As a huge fan of The Daily Show, how could I not be intrigued by the plot? Williams plays Tom Dobbs, the host of a political talk/news/comedy show. One night, before the taping of the show begins, Dobbs is asked by an audience member why he doesn't run for president. Dobbs takes it to heart, and actually announces his candidacy. At first, it doesn't look like he'll make much of an impact, but after his irreverent performance in a debate with the incumbent president and his Republican challenger, Dobbs becomes a real contender.
How can a premise like this go wrong, you might well ask?
One of the things I hate most about a movie is when it can't stick to one genre. This movie was billed as a comedy/political satire, and that's what I went in expecting to see. Up to a point, that's exactly what it is. But then, things change. Enter Eleanor Green (Linney), an employee at Delacroy, a computer company that makes electronic voting machines. She discovers there might be a problem with the software in the machines, but company executives (primarily Alan Stewart, played by a pudgy Jeff Goldblum) plan to keep her quiet at all costs. Not long after Eleanor arrives on the scene, the movie starts to shift into a romantic comedy, abandoning much of its political overtones in favor of developing a relationship between Tom and Eleanor Then, just as genre number two starts to get off the ground, the intrigue surrounding Eleanor and the secrets she might reveal about her employers becomes the new focus, turning the last third of the movie into a half-baked attempt at a thriller.
Don't get me wrong--the schizophrenic genre-jumping isn't the only place where the film goes wrong. I know Barry Levinson is a talented writer and director, but this time around it looks like he just didn't get the character of Tom Dobbs. Ostensibly, Tom Dobbs is supposed to be very much like John Stewart, and his show is supposed to be like The Daily Show. However, Dobbs doesn't act like a political humorist. When he's on the show, he says one or two politically oriented things--we see him talk to a senator once, for example. Mostly, though, Tom Dobbs comes off as Robin Williams doing a standup routine. There's nothing wrong with Robin Williams doing a standup routine--I highly recommend Robin Williams: Live on Broadway, which is amazingly hilarious--but it seemed out of character for Tom Dobbs. I think maybe Levinson didn't get that the formula for The Daily Show is "fake news program" not "program that makes up fake news." Dobbs seems to be doing a version of Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update most of the time (which is ironic, since Dobbs actually appears on Weekend Update near the end of the film). It just doesn't fit.
The supporting case, by and large, does an adequate job. I never get tired of Christopher Walken and his weirdness, and comedian Lewis Black, although quite subdued in this film, still gets in a few really funny jokes.
But overall, the film simply falls flat. It's far less than it should have been, and a far cry from what it could have been. All things considered, I think I should have gone to the karaoke bar. Ah, well. Live and learn.
Bottom line: Could have been great...but didn't even come close to fulfilling its potential.