Man of the Year (DVD, 2007, Widescreen Edition)

This film isn't always laugh out loud funny, so much as ironic. But I did scoff, snicker, and chuckle enough times to agree that it is a comedy, although it also has some strong dramatic elements, and a couple of hints of thriller.

Plot in a nutshell: think Jon Stewart runs for president, and wins due to a computer glitch. The woman who finds the glitch is set up and fired from the company that makes the computer voting program, and maybe worse. The comedian cum politician learns from this woman that the glitch exists, and has an moral crisis (yes, this is where the film becomes unbelievable, heh).

I don't think this movie would have been quite as good as it was without the great cast. Robin Williams is, of course, over the top - you can see smoke emanating from his ears during the serious parts of the film, but it makes sense with this script; it works. Laura Linney is great, again - I really like her work. And Christopher Walken is Christopher Walken. There's nothing else to say on that score. All of the supporting actors come together nicely, and the casting always seems appropriate.

Anyway, the main reason I like this film is that it's one of the very, very few pieces of political satire that manages to remain somewhat neutral toward real-world politics. Both sides (Democrats and Republicans) get their share of bearing the brunt. I may be unique in thinking this, but I get very tired of so-called comedies that end up being stages abused for the purpose of laying out the writers' personal politics, and attacking those whose politics differ. Man of the Year is advertised as a comedy, and it actually was one - not a Michael Moore documentary with a laugh track inserted (like some so-called comedies these days).

I definitely recommend you see this film. It's not going to change your life, but it's light-hearted, and pretty darned good. My kind of movie!