Several years ago, screenwriting/directing partners Lisa Addario and Joe Syracuse came up with a crazy idea: What if a rebellious teenager became the pen-pal of a notorious, Castro-like tyrant of a small Caribbean island nation—and he suddenly arrived on her doorstep? That’s what happens when sullen 16-year-old Tatiana (Odeya Rush) satisfies her social studies teacher’s (Jason Biggs) assignment to "write to a famous person" by choosing Gen. Anton Vincent (Michael Caine), who responds, leading to a cordial correspondence. When Vincent is deposed by U.S.-backed forces, he supposedly disappears, but in reality seeks refuge in Tatiana’s garage in suburban Savannah, GA. Using her computer to communicate with loyalists, Vincent plots his return to power, while teaching Tatiana how to overthrow her own oppressors—the clique of mean girls who make her high school life miserable. "Take out the leaders," he tells her. "Foment unrest. Assume authority." Meanwhile, Tatiana’s single mother (Katie Holmes)—a love-starved dental hygienist—is having an affair with her creepy boss (Seth Green), a married man with a foot fetish. And there’s another weak subplot involving Tatiana’s Christian fundamentalist boyfriend (Jackson Beard). Originally titled Coup D’Etat, the satire should have been sharper and more subversive. And while Caine tries hard, he’s more convincing as Tatiana’s avuncular advisor than as a ruthless despot. Optional. (S. Granger)
Dear Dictator
Cinedigm, 90 min., not rated, DVD: $16.99, Blu-ray: $19.99 Volume 33, Issue 4
Dear Dictator
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