AMERICAN PRESIDENT, THE
1994, Michael Douglas, Annette Benning
Once in a great while, Hollywood produces a great picture, which I can watch over and over again. The American President is one of those rare movies.
Michael Douglas stars as the President, and does a superb job at it. Annette Benning is a powerful lobbyist for an environmental group. She meets the president by accidentally insulting him when she thinks he isn't around. After a brief face to face meeting where the president actually asks her to go somewhere to get a cup of coffee, she goes back home. Later that night, he calls her on the phone. Thinking that it's a friend of hers calling as a joke, she insults him again. When she realizes that she just insulted the president again in the same day, embarrassment fills her face. The President was actually calling her to invite her to be his date at a Formal State Dinner at the White House.
After agreeing to go to the dinner, the movie then follows the two in a courtship. Meanwhile, since it's an election year, the President's challenger to the White House (played by Richard Dreyfuss) uses this courtship to rally the American people to his side, citing family values, etc. (Sounds familiar, doesn't it?)
The movie has many more detailed parts to it, but that's the basic foundation of the plot.
What's so great about this movie is that it is not only brilliantly acted by all actors, it also places the President of the United States in a different light - almost as just one of us.
The plot is charming, the dialog is precious, and the acting is superb.
The movie? One of the best I've seen.
Recommended to all - especially fans of romantic comedies.
Rating: 10 out of 10.
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