Man of the Year

One of the funniest comedians around today is Robin Williams, once he gets going there's just no stopping him. He's like a summer hurricane, once he's moving you get swept up in the excitement and laughter. Teaming him up with Barry Levinson is shear genesis; with Levinson's direction and Williams' natural ability to adlib you see the best of both worlds. The political satire is in your face from the opening scenes and never lets up until the end of the movie. This movie shows a true side to politics, the popularity vote and what would happen if the most popular man won the election.
When comedian Tom Dobbs decides to run for President more than a few people think that its more than just a joke, and then when he wins because of a computer glitch he's not the only one that is surprised. This movie is full of the truth in politics; the lying, the cheating and the backstabbing are just some of the highlights that are exposed here. Once the story gets going there is just no stopping it, with the energy that Williams brings to the screen its like trying to stop an avalanche half way down the slope. There are three supporting roles that stand out in this film and those are filled by Lewis Black, Jeff Goldblum and Christopher Walken. These three characters help keep the story from getting to far beyond reality, so as the story progresses it stays within the realm of believability.
There are parts to this movie that are so funny its hard to think that they the story is trying to make a point, what it is, is something that we all know but do nothing about. We are well aware that politicians lie to get into office, but once there the voting public never holds them responsible. If any of us lied to our bosses there would be no hope to us keeping our jobs, but here we allow these men and women to tell us bold faced lies and what do we do when they don't come through with what they promise. Nothing. If you passed this movie by because you aren't into political stories, you should give it a shot, with Williams as the President candidate and then President-elect its far beyond any political movie I've seen in years.