American Dreamz
The President of the United States (Dennis Quaid) seems to be having a nervous breakdown after picking up a newspaper for the first time in four years, and when his Chief of Staff (Willem Dafoe) determines to get the Commander in Chief out of his pajamas and back into the spotlight, the stage is set for a talent contest that the nation will never forget. To President Staton, the world is a fairly black-and-white place, but a glance at the daily headlines on the eve of his reelection leaves the most powerful man in the free world shaken to the very core. Now determined to read as much as possible in order to best assess the opinions of the general public, President Staton locks himself away and obsessively begins taking in as much information as humanly possible. With concern about the President's mental health soon taking precedence over all other issues in the White House, his nervous Chief of Staff attempts to get the Commander in Chief back in the public eye by booking him as a guest judge on television's top-rated talent show, "American Dreamz." A weekly ratings juggernaut hosted by self-loathing celebrity Martin Tweed (Hugh Grant), "American Dreamz" cashes in on the dominant culture of celebrity by affording everyday Americans the opportunity to be catapulted into stardom. As "American Dreamz" hopefuls Sally (Mandy Moore) and Omer (Sam Golzari) progress to the final round and the President takes his seat on the panel, an unexpected revelation about one of the finalists promises to make this season finale the biggest ratings grabber in television history. more..
Director: Paul Weitz
Starring: Hugh Grant, Dennis Quaid, Mandy Moore, Willem Dafoe, Chris Klein
A blithe, funny, and engaging movie.
The movie is more slapdash than smooth, more impulsive than calculating, and it takes cheap shots. I responded to its savage, sloppy zeal.
The rare case of a movie that gets better as it goes along.
Not as incisive a political commentary as "Thank You For Smoking," American Dreamz lampoons the public's appetite for mindless entertainment and easy distraction from serious concerns.
American Dreamz pitches its softballs with style. Martin Tweed, the preeningly heartless British host of the title TV show, just may be the great comic role that has always eluded Hugh Grant.
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