El Hombre del Año

I am not a great fan of Robin Williams, although I recognize the immensity and diversity of his talent. And I do not think much of Barry Levinson. But this film is prescient, except that Tom Dobbs, unlike Trump, is a decent man.

Okay, I wasn't sure about this movie prior to going. I read the four or five reviews and they said it wasn't a comedy. Therefore, I expected it to be a thriller like they said.

Well, they weren't exactly correct. It is funny, and no, not all the humor is in the trailer. I agree, this is not just a comedy, it's a dramady (drama/comedy) But if you know that going in, you won't be as disappointed. It is similar to Barry Levinsons other comedies, funny but also has some deep drama.

This movie was advertised wrong, much like The Village. But it is still a good movie

Robin Williams is "Man of the Year" in this 2006 film also starring Christopher Walken, Laura Linney, and Jeff Goldblum. Williams plays comedian Tom Dobbs, a Jon Stewart type who decides to run for President. He gives great speeches, filled with humor, and ruins a televised debate against the incumbent, but wins a standing ovation. He wins.

Laura Linney plays Eleanor Green, who works for the company that developed the new, state of the art voting system, and she realizes that there was a problem with it, and that Dobbs did not win the election. Her superiors absolutely don't want it to come out. Posing as someone from the FBI, she is able to approach the President-elect but gets caught up in his humor and his friendly entourage and doesn't tell him. Meanwhile, the company has gotten rid of her and is taking any steps it can to discredit her.

I knew nothing of this film going in, so I didn't know that it was incorrectly marketed. I found the film an easy mix of hilarious comedy, mostly Williams' routines, and some true drama. This is never easy to do, and often, a film like this doesn't know what it wants to be. That's not the case with "Man of the Year," and I think Levinson's approach is successful. Mostly this is because Robin Williams can do anything - he's a riot, he's warm, he can do real drama, and here he does a wonderful job. Laura Linney gives a terrific performance as a woman who finds herself in terrible trouble as she tries to right a wrong.

Very good movie with a good cast.

I think the above summary says it all. The movie was good for a laugh, and the debate scene was spectacular. Other than a few other nuggets of comedic genius, this movie ends up spiraling out of control and lands somewhere between a dark comedy and a suspense drama. Levinson can't seem to figure out if he wants to make a comedy or a drama, and as a result, the movie ends up getting to big for itself.

I was left incredulous at the convoluted chain of events that was, at times, completely unbelievable. The film is good for those of us who want a good laugh, but don't expect any kind of great, intelligent satire or you'll be slightly disappointed.

How do you know your president is fictional? He passes a law guaranteeing everyone a job (Dave); he's popular among both parties (The American President); he kicks terrorists off a plane (Air Force One); he teams up with his Republican/Democratic archrival on a third-party ticket after someone spends all movie trying to kill them (My Fellow Americans); he ignores Global Warming despite liberal nagging (The Day After Tomorrow); he almost causes an asteroid to hit earth due to lack of faith in an oil-driller astronaut (Armageddon); he gives a life-affirming speech after millions die due to a smaller Asteroid (Deep Impact); or he's just busy fighting off the aliens (Independence Day; Scary Movie 3-4).

In this fictional turn, we get Robin Williams as A Jon Stewart type who launches a populist campaign....and wins. The story begins there. The script is over-the-top, as is the acting, and the characters are stereotypical. Voters want change, and when the voter wants it, the change appears in the form of talk-show host "Comedian Tom Dobbs." Not expecting to win, Dobbs lampoons the usual suspects, reveals his sordid past (some of which is sordid), and asks us, the audience, perpetually, as in every six or eight seconds, if we should be more tolerant of politicians who are like us. He wants change! We get change, but only as a plot device to showcase the evils of electronic voting, and how even when no one intends to steal an election, self-interest causes the same coverups due to stock price rather than a black-ops team like Nixon had. Dobbs is the solution, and if you don't laugh along and agree along like Bill Maher wants you to, well you're just out of the loop. Look at all those people laughing! The best part of the movie was the end, when Dobbs truly comes of age, a changed and improved man from his Washington experience. Christopher Walken as the dying campaign manager was brilliant, and the rest of the cast wasn't bad. Laura Linney gave a creepiness to her role that would have been difficult to duplicate.