Man of the Year

Up for a bad political satire? How about a bad standup act? Maybe a bad thriller? Or a bad romantic comedy? No need to watch four separate movies, because Barry Levinson's Man of the Year features all of them in one package. Robin Williams plays Tom Dobbs, a talk-show host/political satirist (think: more manic version of Jon Stewart) egged on by his audience to run for president as an independent. At first he campaigns on the issues, which bores his listeners, but after switching to outrageous comic rants, Dobbs unexpectedly wins. All seems well, until a woman (Laura Linney) shows up to tell the president-elect—who's instantly smitten with her—that his victory resulted from a computer glitch concealed by the company whose defective machines counted the votes. Our hero now faces a moral dilemma about whether or not he should keep the office under false pretenses, and the arrival of corporate goons intending to silence his whistle-blowing new girlfriend makes matters all the more urgent. Man of the Year obviously has a lot of important political issues on its mind, but it suffers from limp writing, uninspired direction, and shrill performances (except for Christopher Walken's characteristically laidback turn as the candidate's manager). Not recommended. [Note: Available in either widescreen or full screen versions, DVD extras include a 13-minute “Commander in Chief” making-of featurette, a “Robin Williams: Stand Up Guy” behind-the-scene improv featuring the star (9 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a small extras package for a disappointing film.] (F. Swietek)