Ein Präsident für alle Fälle

My husband and I both love this movie, for a number of reasons. 1. We are fans of James Garner in particular, and Jack Lemmon also. As other reviewers have noted, they play off each other extremely well. 2. In NJ, we have two former (rival)governors who share a political column. Every time I see this movie, I think of the column, where they share a grudging respect somewhat like the characters in the movie. 3. None of the reviewers have said much about the "king among the commoners" theme. During their cross-country trek, the two former Presidents find out who their "fellow Americans" REALLY are - illegal immigrants, homeless families looking for a job, gay security guards, etc., etc. That's what this movie's REALLY all about. -Earth Mother

Jack Lemmon and James Garner are in top comedic form in My Fellow Americans. They, respectively, play former President Russell Kramer (Republican) and former President Matt Douglas (Democrat), who have spent the last thirty years hating each others guts. "It's always sad when another good Democrat dies," Douglas says to a Secret Service Agent while on the way to the funeral. "I believe that the deceased was a Republican, sir," he replies. To that, Douglas says, "Oh. Then this might not be so bad."

The current President, Haney (Dan Aykroyd) took kickback while Kramer was president. And Haney's trying to pin them on Kramer. Kramer and Douglas both know about it and Haney's going to try to kill them. When that proves unsucessful, Kramer and Douglas end up stranded alone in the middle of nowhere. So the two people, who loathe each other, must work together to tell thier fellow Americans while seeing the effect of their presidency on the general people.

There are too many political movies. There aren't many political comedies. There are even less raunchy political comedies. In fact, it seems that My Fellow Americans should have been raunchier to warrant an R rating. Peter Segal wanted it to be ribald, but it would have been easier to write for if they didn't have an PG-13 rating in mind, so they could open up the humor a little.

I really like the two leads. They had great chemistry together, I thought they actually hated each other. Lemmon and Garner had a great sense of comedic timing. The movie knew it was a comedy, but tried to take itself in a serious way, which has a great result. Other characters, however, pop up and then leave. Kay Griffin (Sela Ward), the reporter, has about two scenes, and Ben just pops up out of nowhere.

It was extremely funny. Its raunch mixed in with tries-to-take-it-serious humor: "Now, if you'll excuse me, my salad's getting cold." I can't really think of anything else to say.

My Fellow Americans is very funny with great leads. Look for it!

My rating: 8/10

Rated PG-13 for salty language and innuendo.

So many professional actors, so much sophomoric humor. You gotta love it.

"My Fellow Americans" features Jack Lemmon and James Garner as ex-presidents on the run when they discover a cover-up with the present Chief of Staff (Dan Aykroyd) in the middle.

This isn't a movie anyone's going to take seriously, and well they shouldn't. There are lots of moments here that will elicit a laugh or two, maybe three. And what plot there is whizzes by at such a fast pace that there's more time to concentrate on the guffaws.

Lemmon and Garner play their parts as you'd expect. That they go the dumb route is no surprise; in fact, it makes their presence here all the more entertaining. Aykroyd basically plays the heavy here, so there's no real chance for him to generate any laughs. A shame, since he's usually so good at that.

Then there's the fact that real gems like Bacall and Brimley and Ward are just given throw-away parts; it's good to see them, of course, but you'd figure they'd have more to do (especially Bacall!!).

Kudos, though, to John Heard as the dim-witted Vice President. Some of the biggest laughs in this movie (for me) came from him. His eulogy at the funeral scene early in the movie always makes me laugh out, as does his pithy observations such as "Hey, a hat!". Beats me why he isn't in more movies.

As I said, the laughs are there, and if you demand nothing more from a comedy than to laugh, you'll want to do your political duty and rent "My Fellow Americans" - the one movie that insults both parties equally.

Seven stars, plus one extra for putting up an excellent "fakade".

I was very impressed with MY FELLOW AMERICANS the first time I watched it. I was expecting the film to be horrid as it starred Jack Lemmon (which is great) but had James Garner in place of Walter Matthau. I thought this might create a problem, but no.

The story is very fresh and original and the dialogue is witty and the film is filled with a biting sense of sarcasm. It is a touching film at that as well, because it teaches good life lessons about how you should not waste your time and just get right to living. The film has violence and action sequences (explosions, gun shots) that almost make it seem like an action comedy. But, no this is no action comedy. Just a good clean, fun comedy.

The role played by James Garner is very well written and it seems that his role was written with Matthau in mind. But, Garner takes his place well and the film would not have been the same without him. Truly hilarious. MY FELLOW AMERICANS: 4/5.

"My Fellow Americans" boasts a well-crafted and quite funny script about two former presidents and longtime political rivals who must team up to expose a criminal scheme in which the sitting chief executive is implicated. Along the way, their efforts result in numerous farcically-staged attempts on their lives. That the screenplay works quite well in political thriller terms, with dramatically satisfying plot twists throughout, is rewarding enough; it's so much icing on the cake that the accompanying gags are equally strong, making this one of the most facile blends of suspense and comedy since the films of Colin Higgins. The screenplay's considerable entertainment value -- particularly for a political junkie -- is enhanced and brought to its full potential by solid direction and cutting, as well as the unassailable professionalism of a first-rate cast. The on screen chemistry and formidable comic timing of Jack Lemmon and James Garner as the former presidents, in their first and only screen pairing, is delightful, and thankfully so: one or both dominate almost every scene in the film. They receive equally expert support from Lauren Bacall, demonstrating her rarely-exploited talent for comedy; Dan Aykroyd in an uncharacteristically restrained performance; and the always-solidly professional John Heard, as well as an extraordinarily sharp supporting cast studded with many familiar faces -- such as Wilford Brimley ("China Syndrome"), Sela Ward, and Esther Rolle of "Good Times" fame -- though not all are necessarily household names. Any lover of political satire or action-oriented farce will find this film's running time to be time well spent, and C-SPAN addicts -- provided that they have a sense of humor about their passion – will be richly rewarded.