list http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around American Dreamz on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 http://www.spout.com/films/American_Dreamz/268299/default.aspx Title: American Dreamz
Year: 2006
Director: Paul Weitz
Plot: 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. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Times Tagged: 4
Number of Lists: 8
Number of blog posts: 4
Number of discussion threads: 1
SpoutRating: 2
]]>Tue, 21 Jul 2009 20:56:03 GMTAmerican Dreamz2006Paul WeitzThe President of the United States (<a href="/players/P____58161/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Dennis Quaid</a>) 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 (<a href="/players/P____16547/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Willem Dafoe</a>) 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 (<a href="/players/P____28225/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Hugh Grant</a>), "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. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide4Slightly Tagged (1-5)8412http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/t84249drkuj.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/American_Dreamz/268299/default.aspxFilm http://www.spout.com/groups/Weekly_Theme/Re_Weekly_Theme_for_July_20_Television/625/43216/1/ShowPost.aspx Post By: mercurial
Post To: Weekly Theme
Post Date: 7/21/2009 4:56:03 PM
Body: A great movie that doesn't get a lot of attention in Series 7: The Contenders. It came out during the height of reality shows like Survivor and was about a faux new television show in which seven unsuspecting people are picked by a lottery and only the last one standing gets their freedom. At the time, it seemed like an Americanized version of Battle Royale, but Series 7 focused more on the television aspect and just how ridiculous it was becoming. I know it's mushy and preachy, but I still love Pleasantville. Watching modern day kids trying to survive in a black white Leave It To Beaver like town; and it was when Reese Witherspoon was still in her slutty bad ass girl Freeway stage which is always hilarious to watch. Bolt fits the theme. A dog raised believing it is a super enhanced cyber puppy on a television show gets lost and must learn to live in the real world was decent enough. Hairspray was about a bunch of kids vying for a coveted spot on a local tv dance show. Halloween III: Season of the Witch revolved around kids putting on cursed masks and watching a television commercial that would kill them. Fun times. Galaxy Quest was about a group of washed up Strek Trek like actors that find themselves transported to a real intergalactic war and must try and imitate their faux television personas to survive. I'll have to watch it a dozen more times, but I'm fairly kinda sorta maybe almost certain that Inland Empire had something to do with television. Natural Born Killers was more or less an indictment of the horrors of television on our society. I didn't really care for The Nines because I thought it was a little too too; it was trying to convey something about losing ourselves in the false reality of television. Or maybe not, I don't know. Bamboozled is one of my favorite Spike Lee movies about a television executive that tries to get fired by programming a horrifically racist minstrel show but is shocked to learn that it becomes a sensational hit. Soapdish was a stupid fun look at all the ridiculous bitching and backstabbing that goes on behind the scenes of a daytime soap opera series. Edtv came out right after The Truman Show and was pretty much trying to say the same thing. The Cable Guy. Doesn't get the credit it deserves and is probably one of Jim Carrey's best performances. American Dreamz was just __________. I don't watch American Idol so maybe I wasn't cool enough to enjoy it. Stay Tuned was one of those movies from my childhood where most of the comedy went straight over my head. Something about a family getting sucked into a sadistic television and must survive all the twisted versions of popular shows at the time. Need to watch it again.
]]>Tue, 21 Jul 2009 20:56:03 GMTmercurialWeekly Theme7/21/2009 4:56:03 PMA great movie that doesn't get a lot of attention in Series 7: The Contenders. It came out during the height of reality shows like Survivor and was about a faux new television show in which seven unsuspecting people are picked by a lottery and only the last one standing gets their freedom. At the time, it seemed like an Americanized version of Battle Royale, but Series 7 focused more on the television aspect and just how ridiculous it was becoming. I know it's mushy and preachy, but I still love Pleasantville. Watching modern day kids trying to survive in a black white Leave It To Beaver like town; and it was when Reese Witherspoon was still in her slutty bad ass girl Freeway stage which is always hilarious to watch. Bolt fits the theme. A dog raised believing it is a super enhanced cyber puppy on a television show gets lost and must learn to live in the real world was decent enough. Hairspray was about a bunch of kids vying for a coveted spot on a local tv dance show. Halloween III: Season of the Witch revolved around kids putting on cursed masks and watching a television commercial that would kill them. Fun times. Galaxy Quest was about a group of washed up Strek Trek like actors that find themselves transported to a real intergalactic war and must try and imitate their faux television personas to survive. I'll have to watch it a dozen more times, but I'm fairly kinda sorta maybe almost certain that Inland Empire had something to do with television. Natural Born Killers was more or less an indictment of the horrors of television on our society. I didn't really care for The Nines because I thought it was a little too too; it was trying to convey something about losing ourselves in the false reality of television. Or maybe not, I don't know. Bamboozled is one of my favorite Spike Lee movies about a television executive that tries to get fired by programming a horrifically racist minstrel show but is shocked to learn that it becomes a sensational hit. Soapdish was a stupid fun look at all the ridiculous bitching and backstabbing that goes on behind the scenes of a daytime soap opera series. Edtv came out right after The Truman Show and was pretty much trying to say the same thing. The Cable Guy. Doesn't get the credit it deserves and is probably one of Jim Carrey's best performances. American Dreamz was just __________. I don't watch American Idol so maybe I wasn't cool enough to enjoy it. Stay Tuned was one of those movies from my childhood where most of the comedy went straight over my head. Something about a family getting sucked into a sadistic television and must survive all the twisted versions of popular shows at the time. Need to watch it again. http://www.spout.com/blogs/spoutblog/archive/2008/10/1/35765.aspx Post By: SpoutBlog
Post To: SpoutBlog on spout.com
Post Date: 10/1/2008 12:01:21 PM
Body: Will this year’s presidential election be determined by which candidate is more hip? Barack Obama is younger, listens to Jay-Z and Kanye West and is something of a trendy choice among college students. McCain, on the other hand, is older and (now) less athletic but is still considered to be hip in a cool grandpa kind of way. Like the grandpa who has exciting war stories to share. Have you seen the video footage of him jumping from an explosion during the USS Forrestal fire? That’s pretty cool. So, the outcome of the race may depend on what the majority of Americans think is cool. Charisma or Muscle. It reminds me of an election for high school class president. Who is more popular, the preppy basketball player or the more jockish captain of the wrestling team? But do we really want a cool president? Let’s take a look at some of the coolest fictional presidents from the movies and decide if it’s truly a good idea to base our vote on which candidate we’d prefer to hang with. 10. President Lindberg (Tony “Tiny” Lister), from The Fifth Element I’m not saying that being cross-eyed or incessantly receiving calls from your mother is cool, though both could very well be thought so in the year 2263. That’s so far in the future that Lindberg isn’t just the President of the United States, he’s head of the “United Federation” (like in Star Trek). No, I’m saying that Lindberg is cool because he’s really big and badass and could probably do some sweet damage to some Mangalores all by his lonesome. Unfortunately, Lister never gets to display his old wrestling moves in any action scenes. 9. President Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho (Terry Crews), from Idiocracy Another African-American wrestler-turned-president, also in a future setting. Only this time it’s the character who is a former pro wrestler (Crews is instead a former pro football player) and the setting is even further in time, 2505, when the people of the world are very, very stupid. But is it stupid to elect a man with an awesome chopper and a tendency to sing his speeches? If Teddy Roosevelt were alive, he’d probably also have a motorcycle and a machine gun, though maybe he wouldn’t shoot the latter while standing before Congress. Or maybe he would, and maybe we’d still re-elect him. 8. President Devlin (George Clooney), from Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over If George Clooney stopped simply talking politics and actually ran for president, a lot of people would vote for him regardless of what he stood for. Simply because he’s a cool celebrity. Fans of the Spy Kids films kind of got a taste of what President George Clooney would look like when his character, Devlin, became commander-in-chief by the third installment. 7. President James Dale (Jack Nicholson), from Mars Attacks! Of course, if there’s one actor even cooler than Clooney, it’s Jack Nicholson. What if the presidential race consisted of these two actors up for the position? If you truly voted based on the coolness of the candidate, you’d have to go with Jack. But only if he wore sunglasses during every public appearance, including especially the State of the Union Address. 6. President Joseph Staton (Dennis Quaid), from American Dreamz American Idol may not be the coolest thing on television, but it is one of the most popular TV shows, and it’s pretty cool to a good percentage of the people old enough to vote for the president. Perhaps if the voting age was lowered to 14 (see #1), it would be cooler for the President to appear on MTV or at a Jonas Brothers concert. However, as the election tends to be more in the hands of older folk, it would be cool for a president or presidential hopeful to appear on Idol, as Staton does in this movie (with a fictionalized version of the show, titled American Dreamz). 5. President George W. Bush (James Adomian), from Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay This list is basically limited to fictional presidents in film, but we can make an exception for Adomian’s portrayal of Bush, as it’s no more accurate a representation than is Neil Patrick Harris’ portrayal of himself in the same film. In this movie, Bush is a much cooler guy. He gets high, has an awesome rec room, and he’s like a rebellious yet spoiled teenager. Heck, if ‘Rold and Kumar like hanging with him, you’d probably like hanging with him, too. 4. President James Marshall (Harrison Ford), from Air Force One People used to prefer a leader who’d proven himself in battle. Now, it’s not so important for a presidential candidate to have served in war or even been shown to have some sort of fight in him. Now it’s more cool than qualifying for a president to be able to kick a bad guy’s ass without need of assistance from the Secret Service. Even cooler, though, is a president who can kick a bad guy’s ass while also avoiding falling out of an airplane cargo door. 3. President Thomas “Tug” Benson (Lloyd Bridges), from Hot Shots! Part Deux Even tougher a guy than President Marshall is President Benson. In fact, he’s been through enough to make McCain look like a lazy hippie. He caught a bazooka round in Okinawa, took a bullet in Corregidor that went straight through both ears, took a torpedo in the lower abdomen that resulted in the removal of his intestines, he has a shell the size of his fist in his head and he was shot down on more than 194 air missions. He’s not too bright these days, but he’ll still take it upon himself to go into Iraq and fight the enemy face to face. With a light saber. 2. President Mays Gilliam (Chris Rock), from Head of State He’s not as cool as his running-mate (who is also his brother, played by Bernie Mac), and the movie isn’t as funny or insightful as Chris Rock’s political stand-up, but Mays Gilliam is like an even hipper exaggeration of Obama. Not only does he listen to rap, he plays Nelly at formal events and gets old ladies to dance and sing along. He takes mudslinging to a new level with “Yo Mama” jokes. And his “That Ain’t Right” slogan is like a cooler, possibly more genuine, inverse of Obama’s “Yes We Can.” 1. President Max Frost (Christopher Jones), from Wild in the Streets As the hit song from the movie goes, “nothing can stop the shape of things to come,” and I take that to mean that inevitably there will one day be a rock star elected to the presidency. After all, there has already been a movie star president, and eight years ago plenty of young music fans were ready to vote Jello Biafra into the White House, simply because he’s Jello Biafra. Despite the uncool things done by Max Frost and his band, The Troopers, such as putting LSD in the capital’s water supply and detaining citizens over the age of 35 for re-education, they do carry out some really hip ideas, such as lowering the voting age to 14, and more importantly they gave the world some classic garage rock tunes. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog
]]>Wed, 01 Oct 2008 16:01:21 GMTSpoutBlogSpoutBlog on spout.com10/1/2008 12:01:21 PMWill this year’s presidential election be determined by which candidate is more hip? Barack Obama is younger, listens to Jay-Z and Kanye West and is something of a trendy choice among college students. McCain, on the other hand, is older and (now) less athletic but is still considered to be hip in a cool grandpa kind of way. Like the grandpa who has exciting war stories to share. Have you seen the video footage of him jumping from an explosion during the USS Forrestal fire? That’s pretty cool. So, the outcome of the race may depend on what the majority of Americans think is cool. Charisma or Muscle. It reminds me of an election for high school class president. Who is more popular, the preppy basketball player or the more jockish captain of the wrestling team? But do we really want a cool president? Let’s take a look at some of the coolest fictional presidents from the movies and decide if it’s truly a good idea to base our vote on which candidate we’d prefer to hang with. 10. President Lindberg (Tony “Tiny” Lister), from The Fifth Element I’m not saying that being cross-eyed or incessantly receiving calls from your mother is cool, though both could very well be thought so in the year 2263. That’s so far in the future that Lindberg isn’t just the President of the United States, he’s head of the “United Federation” (like in Star Trek). No, I’m saying that Lindberg is cool because he’s really big and badass and could probably do some sweet damage to some Mangalores all by his lonesome. Unfortunately, Lister never gets to display his old wrestling moves in any action scenes. 9. President Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho (Terry Crews), from Idiocracy Another African-American wrestler-turned-president, also in a future setting. Only this time it’s the character who is a former pro wrestler (Crews is instead a former pro football player) and the setting is even further in time, 2505, when the people of the world are very, very stupid. But is it stupid to elect a man with an awesome chopper and a tendency to sing his speeches? If Teddy Roosevelt were alive, he’d probably also have a motorcycle and a machine gun, though maybe he wouldn’t shoot the latter while standing before Congress. Or maybe he would, and maybe we’d still re-elect him. 8. President Devlin (George Clooney), from Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over If George Clooney stopped simply talking politics and actually ran for president, a lot of people would vote for him regardless of what he stood for. Simply because he’s a cool celebrity. Fans of the Spy Kids films kind of got a taste of what President George Clooney would look like when his character, Devlin, became commander-in-chief by the third installment. 7. President James Dale (Jack Nicholson), from Mars Attacks! Of course, if there’s one actor even cooler than Clooney, it’s Jack Nicholson. What if the presidential race consisted of these two actors up for the position? If you truly voted based on the coolness of the candidate, you’d have to go with Jack. But only if he wore sunglasses during every public appearance, including especially the State of the Union Address. 6. President Joseph Staton (Dennis Quaid), from American Dreamz American Idol may not be the coolest thing on television, but it is one of the most popular TV shows, and it’s pretty cool to a good percentage of the people old enough to vote for the president. Perhaps if the voting age was lowered to 14 (see #1), it would be cooler for the President to appear on MTV or at a Jonas Brothers concert. However, as the election tends to be more in the hands of older folk, it would be cool for a president or presidential hopeful to appear on Idol, as Staton does in this movie (with a fictionalized version of the show, titled American Dreamz). 5. President George W. Bush (James Adomian), from Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay This list is basically limited to fictional presidents in film, but we can make an exception for Adomian’s portrayal of Bush, as it’s no more accurate a representation than is Neil Patrick Harris’ portrayal of himself in the same film. In this movie, Bush is a much cooler guy. He gets high, has an awesome rec room, and he’s like a rebellious yet spoiled teenager. Heck, if ‘Rold and Kumar like hanging with him, you’d probably like hanging with him, too. 4. President James Marshall (Harrison Ford), from Air Force One People used to prefer a leader who’d proven himself in battle. Now, it’s not so important for a presidential candidate to have served in war or even been shown to have some sort of fight in him. Now it’s more cool than qualifying for a president to be able to kick a bad guy’s ass without need of assistance from the Secret Service. Even cooler, though, is a president who can kick a bad guy’s ass while also avoiding falling out of an airplane cargo door. 3. President Thomas “Tug” Benson (Lloyd Bridges), from Hot Shots! Part Deux Even tougher a guy than President Marshall is President Benson. In fact, he’s been through enough to make McCain look like a lazy hippie. He caught a bazooka round in Okinawa, took a bullet in Corregidor that went straight through both ears, took a torpedo in the lower abdomen that resulted in the removal of his intestines, he has a shell the size of his fist in his head and he was shot down on more than 194 air missions. He’s not too bright these days, but he’ll still take it upon himself to go into Iraq and fight the enemy face to face. With a light saber. 2. President Mays Gilliam (Chris Rock), from Head of State He’s not as cool as his running-mate (who is also his brother, played by Bernie Mac), and the movie isn’t as funny or insightful as Chris Rock’s political stand-up, but Mays Gilliam is like an even hipper exaggeration of Obama. Not only does he listen to rap, he plays Nelly at formal events and gets old ladies to dance and sing along. He takes mudslinging to a new level with “Yo Mama” jokes. And his “That Ain’t Right” slogan is like a cooler, possibly more genuine, inverse of Obama’s “Yes We Can.” 1. President Max Frost (Christopher Jones), from Wild in the Streets As the hit song from the movie goes, “nothing can stop the shape of things to come,” and I take that to mean that inevitably there will one day be a rock star elected to the presidency. After all, there has already been a movie star president, and eight years ago plenty of young music fans were ready to vote Jello Biafra into the White House, simply because he’s Jello Biafra. Despite the uncool things done by Max Frost and his band, The Troopers, such as putting LSD in the capital’s water supply and detaining citizens over the age of 35 for re-education, they do carry out some really hip ideas, such as lowering the voting age to 14, and more importantly they gave the world some classic garage rock tunes. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog http://www.spout.com/blogs/jj79/archive/2008/6/6/30736.aspx Post By: JJ79
Post To: JJ79 Blog
Post Date: 6/6/2008 4:00:20 PM
Body: Director: Paul WeitzReleased: April 21, 2006 *****Six years too late and too smarmy for it's own good, American Dreamz tells the story of an American Idol-type singing competition in conjunction with a parody of President Bush, mixed together with moments from the Iraq War in a final product so heinous and broadly pandering it's nearly unwatchable. Hugh Grant and Mandy Moore star as producer/host Martin Tweed and Kelly Clarkson-clone Sally Kendoo, respectively. As Sally catches the eye of "Tweedy," her army boyfriend returns to America after a laughable injury. Meanwhile, terrorists try to kill the president (Dennis Quaid) by planting a contestant on the show...and the president figures out he needs to think and not simply be a puppet.What a dismal piece of crap. The script seems to want to poke fun at any number of American foibles: Bush, Cheney, Iraq, terrorism, television production, American Idol...even film "logic" (looking through keyholes, for instance) with no real rhyme or reason. Parody and comedy work when they're timely and fresh. Idol premiered four years before this movie hit theaters; Bush has been in office since 2000; Iraq has been going on since 2003; and no terrorist group in the world is as stupid as they're made out to be here. Undoubtedly Saturday Night Live and Mad TV have traversed the same ground countless times-some better, some not-before American Dreamz got in front of our eyeballs.The one thing this film has going for it is the acting. No matter how outlandish, how moronically stupid the plot becomes...they're all game. Grant, Moore, Quaid, Marcia Gay Harden, Willem Defoe, Chris Klein, Jennifer Coolidge, Seth Myers...each of them eat the scenery as best they can. Doing his best "nice" Simon Cowell, Grant elicits a shudder anytime he smiles because we know how his type stereotypically works: he's a snake oil salesman, concerned only with his own self promotion. Moore turns out to be the standout here, not because of anything she does per se, but because she plays Sally as a real person-more real than anyone else on screen. Even in her inevitable downfall, we can't help but like her.The White House subplot may hit too close to home, with Quaid and Defoe looking exactly like their real world counterparts. Ultimately, no matter what your politics, it becomes boring watching this bumbling president continuing to be brain dead. And the grand terrrorist plan, not to mention the cut aways to men in tents in the desert watching the show? Completely unbelievable in the real world and nearly so in this "reel" world. The worst part-possibly, depending on perspective-is the continued insistence being on the show is an American dream. Even if 20 million people watch the real American Idol, how many people aren't watching? An American dream might be for the show to go quietly into the night along with this movie.
]]>Fri, 06 Jun 2008 20:00:20 GMTJJ79JJ79 Blog6/6/2008 4:00:20 PMDirector: Paul WeitzReleased: April 21, 2006 *****Six years too late and too smarmy for it's own good, American Dreamz tells the story of an American Idol-type singing competition in conjunction with a parody of President Bush, mixed together with moments from the Iraq War in a final product so heinous and broadly pandering it's nearly unwatchable. Hugh Grant and Mandy Moore star as producer/host Martin Tweed and Kelly Clarkson-clone Sally Kendoo, respectively. As Sally catches the eye of "Tweedy," her army boyfriend returns to America after a laughable injury. Meanwhile, terrorists try to kill the president (Dennis Quaid) by planting a contestant on the show...and the president figures out he needs to think and not simply be a puppet.What a dismal piece of crap. The script seems to want to poke fun at any number of American foibles: Bush, Cheney, Iraq, terrorism, television production, American Idol...even film "logic" (looking through keyholes, for instance) with no real rhyme or reason. Parody and comedy work when they're timely and fresh. Idol premiered four years before this movie hit theaters; Bush has been in office since 2000; Iraq has been going on since 2003; and no terrorist group in the world is as stupid as they're made out to be here. Undoubtedly Saturday Night Live and Mad TV have traversed the same ground countless times-some better, some not-before American Dreamz got in front of our eyeballs.The one thing this film has going for it is the acting. No matter how outlandish, how moronically stupid the plot becomes...they're all game. Grant, Moore, Quaid, Marcia Gay Harden, Willem Defoe, Chris Klein, Jennifer Coolidge, Seth Myers...each of them eat the scenery as best they can. Doing his best "nice" Simon Cowell, Grant elicits a shudder anytime he smiles because we know how his type stereotypically works: he's a snake oil salesman, concerned only with his own self promotion. Moore turns out to be the standout here, not because of anything she does per se, but because she plays Sally as a real person-more real than anyone else on screen. Even in her inevitable downfall, we can't help but like her.The White House subplot may hit too close to home, with Quaid and Defoe looking exactly like their real world counterparts. Ultimately, no matter what your politics, it becomes boring watching this bumbling president continuing to be brain dead. And the grand terrrorist plan, not to mention the cut aways to men in tents in the desert watching the show? Completely unbelievable in the real world and nearly so in this "reel" world. The worst part-possibly, depending on perspective-is the continued insistence being on the show is an American dream. Even if 20 million people watch the real American Idol, how many people aren't watching? An American dream might be for the show to go quietly into the night along with this movie. http://www.spout.com/blogs/filmafic06/archive/2007/9/30/20256.aspx Post By: filmafic06
Post To: filmafic06 Blog
Post Date: 9/30/2007 1:00:52 PM
Body: Entertaining, but the whole analysis of TV as opiate of the masses has been done better in the likes of "Network."
]]>Sun, 30 Sep 2007 17:00:52 GMTfilmafic06filmafic06 Blog9/30/2007 1:00:52 PMEntertaining, but the whole analysis of TV as opiate of the masses has been done better in the likes of &quot;Network.&quot; http://www.spout.com/blogs/moviebabe/archive/2007/7/18/15261.aspx Post By: MovieBabe
Post To: MovieBabe Blog
Post Date: 7/18/2007 7:37:00 PM
Body: By Tricia Olszewski Do you think American Idol is ridiculous? How about our president? American Dreamz is hoping that, in its own words, both make you “want to projectile-vomit.” Well, maybe you don’t have to feel that strongly about the TV show. After all, even if you believe AI is the epitome of the cookie-cutter mediocrity our screwed-up culture seems to embrace, you still watch it, right? If you didn’t, you wouldn’t get any of Weitz’s jokes. Writer-director Paul Weitz, who brought us 2002’s About a Boy and 2004’s In Good Company, does a fine job drawing up Martin Tweed (Hugh Grant), a transparently Simon Cowell–ish television personality who lords it over a familiar-looking show called American Dreamz. After heartfelt performances, Tweed says things to Dreamz contestants—many of whom mimic former Idol players—such as “Cindy, I’ve felt this way before. And it was just before I wanted to kill myself.” Weitz goes out of his way to demonstrate that the judge is pretty much the same—straightforward, occasionally mean, unapologetic about his what-are-these-human-emotions attitude—when the cameras are off. When a girlfriend dumps Tweed at the beginning of the movie, he tells her, momentarily all Ryan Seacrest–like, that she’s “amazing.” Then, in self-aware Cowell mode, he says, “You make me feel like being a better person. And I’m not a better person.” Grant, who is so much more fun as a self-absorbed font of sarcasm than a gooey romantic lead, gets the bulk of the screen time—and therefore gets the bulk of the humor. He’s, as always, a charming comedian, though he’s matched by Dennis Quaid, who delivers a subtle W, er, President Stanton. With an eerily Laura-cloned first lady (Marcia Gay Harden) at his side, Stanton, who’s been avoiding public appearances for a couple of weeks, makes a decision one day to read some newspapers while he’s eating breakfast. (When his chief of staff, the Cheney-disguised Willem Dafoe, comes into the room, he asks, “What’s with the papers? New puppy?”) The prez takes a lot of hits, from becoming lost when a speech-feeding device pops out of his ear to talking to his wife about her suggestion of “happy pills,” a discussion that leads to an explanation of what a placebo is. “Sometimes I think I’m a placebo!” Quaid’s commander-in-chief declares. Seth Meyers also gets laughs as Chet, a ruthless agent—as if there were any other kind in Hollywood—out to make a star of Ohio Dreamz-er Sally Kendoo (Mandy Moore). Reality-TV cynics will just get affirmation here: The filming of Sally’s giddily receiving notice that she’s been selected for the show gets two takes because the first wasn’t good enough. And Chet manipulates the broken relationship between Sally and William Williams (Chris Klein)—dumped, he joins the Army and is immediately sent to Iraq—to maximum audience-wooing effect. There’s more lowest-common-denominator-baiting, too: A news report captures Sally at her waitressing job surrounded by, as the caption notes, “unemployed bar patrons.” And her first number is, naturally, “Mom, Don’t Drink Me to Bed Tonight.” Weitz works terrorism into the plot, too, but despite the currency of its topics, American Dreamz never feels like true satire. It doesn’t make you think, and it won’t make you feel any smarter than watching American Idol does. Like a lot of reality TV, AI at some level wants you to feel superior to the people on it—to believe that you’d at least be a better dresser or social engineer, if not a better singer or judge of talent. Weitz’s critique is built into the show itself, which means American Dreamz needs to do some diagnosis of our screwed-up culture in addition to pointing out its symptoms. If the entertaining script and humorous performances are enough to leave you happy, call them a placebo. Turning to the family-unfriendly side of cookie-cutter mediocrity, Charlie’s Party is about a New York woman throwing a cell-phone—that is, partner-swapping—get-together for her 30th birthday. Sound like a ticket to sloppy soft-core fun? On the contrary: It’s quite unlikely that there’s another orgy movie out there that’s more boring or irritating. Written and directed by first-timer Catherine Cahn, the 80-minute film amounts to little more than the story of a spoiled brat trying to force her miserable, personality-free friends to sleep with one another. Charlie (Alissia Miller, who looks a good 35, 36) is a former hotshot VJ who’s now miserably selling knickknacks on the Home Value Shopping Network. She’s throwing the party not only to show how hip she still is but to prove to her boyfriend, Dylan (Chris Tardio), that she doesn’t care that he slept with another former VJ, the Frederick’s of Hollywood–model–looking Zoe (Kim Director), who’s now up for an Oscar. (This rationale, it should be noted, is more clearly explained in the press-kit synopsis than in the film.) Charlie even invites Zoe to the party, along with Jane (Nancy Anne Ridder), a former college friend who’s now a lesbian; Sarah (Sabrina Lloyd), an uptight writer; and Tom (Mark H. Dold), Sarah’s husband, who visits prostitutes because he and his wife apparently never have sex. A goofy, insecure guy named Nick (Eron Otcasek) is also asked to, um, come. Even though everyone is reluctant to go, soon they’re all in the throes of such only-in-the-movies expressions of anticipation as rehearsing conversations in front of mirrors and practicing kissing on pillows. Then they’re tarted up, headed to the Connecticut home of someone’s mother, and drinking heavily—which even a teetotaler would do when faced with Charlie, who wears nearly circuslike makeup and screeches, “I am turning 30, and I’m not going to let anyone fuck this up!” You’d question why this woman even has friends, except that the rest of them are jerks, too. Charlie’s Party gets briefly titillating when the partygoers quit snapping at each other—they still don’t want to go through with the sex, see—and start talking about their fantasies during dinner. But then, as you knew they would be, asses are freed and minds follow. Even though no one in the group, not even any member of the two couples, seems to have any chemistry with anyone else, a few end up in a threesome; others apparently have potentially life-altering experiences together. During a montage of the postcoital swappers, there’s a laughable song whose theme is having someone to come home to. Even more laughable is the solemn trip back to New York, on which every character is implicitly thinking deep thoughts. That’s dumber than all of the movie’s nitwit characters combined.
]]>Wed, 18 Jul 2007 23:37:00 GMTMovieBabeMovieBabe Blog7/18/2007 7:37:00 PM By Tricia Olszewski Do you think American Idol is ridiculous? How about our president? American Dreamz is hoping that, in its own words, both make you &ldquo;want to projectile-vomit.&rdquo; Well, maybe you don&rsquo;t have to feel that strongly about the TV show. After all, even if you believe AI is the epitome of the cookie-cutter mediocrity our screwed-up culture seems to embrace, you still watch it, right? If you didn&rsquo;t, you wouldn&rsquo;t get any of Weitz&rsquo;s jokes. Writer-director Paul Weitz, who brought us 2002&rsquo;s About a Boy and 2004&rsquo;s In Good Company, does a fine job drawing up Martin Tweed (Hugh Grant), a transparently Simon Cowell&ndash;ish television personality who lords it over a familiar-looking show called American Dreamz. After heartfelt performances, Tweed says things to Dreamz contestants&mdash;many of whom mimic former Idol players&mdash;such as &ldquo;Cindy, I&rsquo;ve felt this way before. And it was just before I wanted to kill myself.&rdquo; Weitz goes out of his way to demonstrate that the judge is pretty much the same&mdash;straightforward, occasionally mean, unapologetic about his what-are-these-human-emotions attitude&mdash;when the cameras are off. When a girlfriend dumps Tweed at the beginning of the movie, he tells her, momentarily all Ryan Seacrest&ndash;like, that she&rsquo;s &ldquo;amazing.&rdquo; Then, in self-aware Cowell mode, he says, &ldquo;You make me feel like being a better person. And I&rsquo;m not a better person.&rdquo; Grant, who is so much more fun as a self-absorbed font of sarcasm than a gooey romantic lead, gets the bulk of the screen time&mdash;and therefore gets the bulk of the humor. He&rsquo;s, as always, a charming comedian, though he&rsquo;s matched by Dennis Quaid, who delivers a subtle W, er, President Stanton. With an eerily Laura-cloned first lady (Marcia Gay Harden) at his side, Stanton, who&rsquo;s been avoiding public appearances for a couple of weeks, makes a decision one day to read some newspapers while he&rsquo;s eating breakfast. (When his chief of staff, the Cheney-disguised Willem Dafoe, comes into the room, he asks, &ldquo;What&rsquo;s with the papers? New puppy?&rdquo;) The prez takes a lot of hits, from becoming lost when a speech-feeding device pops out of his ear to talking to his wife about her suggestion of &ldquo;happy pills,&rdquo; a discussion that leads to an explanation of what a placebo is. &ldquo;Sometimes I think I&rsquo;m a placebo!&rdquo; Quaid&rsquo;s commander-in-chief declares. Seth Meyers also gets laughs as Chet, a ruthless agent&mdash;as if there were any other kind in Hollywood&mdash;out to make a star of Ohio Dreamz-er Sally Kendoo (Mandy Moore). Reality-TV cynics will just get affirmation here: The filming of Sally&rsquo;s giddily receiving notice that she&rsquo;s been selected for the show gets two takes because the first wasn&rsquo;t good enough. And Chet manipulates the broken relationship between Sally and William Williams (Chris Klein)&mdash;dumped, he joins the Army and is immediately sent to Iraq&mdash;to maximum audience-wooing effect. There&rsquo;s more lowest-common-denominator-baiting, too: A news report captures Sally at her waitressing job surrounded by, as the caption notes, &ldquo;unemployed bar patrons.&rdquo; And her first number is, naturally, &ldquo;Mom, Don&rsquo;t Drink Me to Bed Tonight.&rdquo; Weitz works terrorism into the plot, too, but despite the currency of its topics, American Dreamz never feels like true satire. It doesn&rsquo;t make you think, and it won&rsquo;t make you feel any smarter than watching American Idol does. Like a lot of reality TV, AI at some level wants you to feel superior to the people on it&mdash;to believe that you&rsquo;d at least be a better dresser or social engineer, if not a better singer or judge of talent. Weitz&rsquo;s critique is built into the show itself, which means American Dreamz needs to do some diagnosis of our screwed-up culture in addition to pointing out its symptoms. If the entertaining script and humorous performances are enough to leave you happy, call them a placebo. Turning to the family-unfriendly side of cookie-cutter mediocrity, Charlie&rsquo;s Party is about a New York woman throwing a cell-phone&mdash;that is, partner-swapping&mdash;get-together for her 30th birthday. Sound like a ticket to sloppy soft-core fun? On the contrary: It&rsquo;s quite unlikely that there&rsquo;s another orgy movie out there that&rsquo;s more boring or irritating. Written and directed by first-timer Catherine Cahn, the 80-minute film amounts to little more than the story of a spoiled brat trying to force her miserable, personality-free friends to sleep with one another. Charlie (Alissia Miller, who looks a good 35, 36) is a former hotshot VJ who&rsquo;s now miserably selling knickknacks on the Home Value Shopping Network. She&rsquo;s throwing the party not only to show how hip she still is but to prove to her boyfriend, Dylan (Chris Tardio), that she doesn&rsquo;t care that he slept with another former VJ, the Frederick&rsquo;s of Hollywood&ndash;model&ndash;looking Zoe (Kim Director), who&rsquo;s now up for an Oscar. (This rationale, it should be noted, is more clearly explained in the press-kit synopsis than in the film.) Charlie even invites Zoe to the party, along with Jane (Nancy Anne Ridder), a former college friend who&rsquo;s now a lesbian; Sarah (Sabrina Lloyd), an uptight writer; and Tom (Mark H. Dold), Sarah&rsquo;s husband, who visits prostitutes because he and his wife apparently never have sex. A goofy, insecure guy named Nick (Eron Otcasek) is also asked to, um, come. Even though everyone is reluctant to go, soon they&rsquo;re all in the throes of such only-in-the-movies expressions of anticipation as rehearsing conversations in front of mirrors and practicing kissing on pillows. Then they&rsquo;re tarted up, headed to the Connecticut home of someone&rsquo;s mother, and drinking heavily&mdash;which even a teetotaler would do when faced with Charlie, who wears nearly circuslike makeup and screeches, &ldquo;I am turning 30, and I&rsquo;m not going to let anyone fuck this up!&rdquo; You&rsquo;d question why this woman even has friends, except that the rest of them are jerks, too. Charlie&rsquo;s Party gets briefly titillating when the partygoers quit snapping at each other&mdash;they still don&rsquo;t want to go through with the sex, see&mdash;and start talking about their fantasies during dinner. But then, as you knew they would be, asses are freed and minds follow. Even though no one in the group, not even any member of the two couples, seems to have any chemistry with anyone else, a few end up in a threesome; others apparently have potentially life-altering experiences together. During a montage of the postcoital swappers, there&rsquo;s a laughable song whose theme is having someone to come home to. Even more laughable is the solemn trip back to New York, on which every character is implicitly thinking deep thoughts. That&rsquo;s dumber than all of the movie&rsquo;s nitwit characters combined. http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/president/MemberTagFilms.aspxpresident
Number of films tagged: 808

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]]>Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:56:35 GMT8444Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/american-nationality/MemberTagFilms.aspxamerican-nationality
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]]>Thu, 26 Apr 2007 02:31:25 GMT111Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/he-dies/MemberTagFilms.aspxhe-dies
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]]>Thu, 26 Apr 2007 02:31:25 GMT111Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/Hugh/MemberTagFilms.aspxHugh
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]]>Thu, 26 Apr 2007 02:31:25 GMT111Tag http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/talentshow/MemberTagFilms.aspxtalentshow
Number of films tagged: 28

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