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Has watching a movie ever made you cringe and say, “I could have done a better job than that.”
Well, I found myself reflecting on this scenario about 20 minutes into ‘Man of the Year’, the latest film brought to life by director Barry Levinson in conjunction with Robin Williams.
Like in his previous comedies like ‘Wag the Dog,’ Levinson uses the political backdrop for ‘Man of the Year’ featuring Robin Williams as a mixed bag of anxiety, comedy, thrill, and conspiracy. Levinson revolves the plot around Tom Dobbs, who is a late-night comedy show, and flips the ordinary superman trope by turning him into a super politician with a heart. Everything starts off with a single comment on his show which receives a couple of million emails asking him to run for president. From there, the story ignites as he speeds through announcing his candidacy which is followed by him appearing on the ballot in 13 states within hours.
Despite being surrounded by professionals, the honesty, authenticity, and irreverence make him a crowd favorite. Instead of divorcing himself from issues like his campaign manager and writer suggested, he released his sharp, yet funny political critique on what is considered the Olympics for presidential candidates, the national debates.
Had Levinson stopped here, he would have served compelling and cringe-inducing dishes for the critic’s palate. And even so, Williams is perfectly capable of creating comedic gems out of the fish-out-water stories only for his unhinged and fast-paced tongue. It’s quite safe to say that it wouldn’t have made it to ‘Wag the Dog’ or even ‘Bulworth’. However, the Chris Rock’s ‘Head of State’ was bleak enough to not be on the list.
Admittedly, it is nowhere near the mess that ‘Head of The State‘ is.
However, he does come knocking on the same door with Man of the Year. He consistently exacerbates his writing and directing weaknesses within scope of the comedy genre. Either he still hasn’t managed to get the reigns on Williams’ humor, or he’s a very linear director. He can only write and direct comedic, or dramatic plots. For his sake, I truly hope that he learns to verse with the best of them and at least dreams are used in the writing rooms.
Thank You for Smoking comes to mind because of Levinson’s fantastic yet cringe inducing sharp political comedy followed by relevant satire. Of course, sort of like Levinson, I never came close to being successful.
A peculiar plotline is associated with a political candidate featuring Laura Linney acting as Eleanor, an insider at the company in charge of electronic voting machines for the entire country. As the story unfolds, Linney’s character discovers a computer glitch that can affect election results. But to her dismay, the CEO does not appreciate her inputs. In a downward spiral of entertainment conspiracies, he began to unfathomably disregard her ideas, leading her to a deep state of confusion. Linney, like always, gives a magnificent performance in this multi- role character. However, she is left baffled by how beached the construction of the character is. The character jumps from one extreme emotion to another, whether it is simmering, paranoia, fear, or stupidity. Jeff Goldblum, in a more sinister character, has a short yet powerful appearance that relates to his more poignant one-liner performance. Goldblum was effective because the character was set on one plane.
Seeing Robin Williams jump from one character to another is a treat, especially to those who believe him able to handle the comic and dramatic with ease. He is most jubilant when each new associated scene appears to him as something witty and explosive. But after the televised debate, Williams discomforting harshness is also contagious. He vividly attacks the American political structure by spitting and screaming. And it’s a sight to behold.
It is at this point that Levinson drifts back into the political thriller genre, while Williams is left with an incomplete donut where the humor once was.
Similarly, Walken and Black tend to come off as overly restrained for much of “Man of the Year,” even though Black has a scene or two that almost comes off as us walking in on a sweaty stand-up comedy routine. Such scenes are indeed comically genius, but can be difficult to swallow as a part of the film’s broader narrative.
With “Man of the Year’ barely scratching the surface of such a polarizing topic, Dick Pope’s distracting cinematography and the soundtrack are tough to ignore. It feels as if it received no detailing and was the last minute decision made as an effort to add some songs to the film.
Sometimes, you get to the end of a film only to find yourself in a position where your only option is to revise the draft. When thinking about the character, the dialogue, and, of course, the scenes you begin to encounter self-doubt over “Hmmm. This would have worked so much better.” “Man of the Year” is a polarizing film of such nature.
Judging from the popularity of Williams and Levinson, “Man of the Year” should, at its debut, bring a decent box office. Although, like Dobbs, highlights with such aplomb, the American citizens are rather easy to sway and the people who ought to win the elections do not even stand a fighting chance.
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