Head of State (2003)

Good concept, poorly executed.

A film of deceptively outspoken contemporary relevance, this is cinema at its most alert, alarming and alive.

Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

In the theatrical film "Head of State," Chris Rock is the comedy drawing card, earning plenty of laughs in his role as an alderman running a pre-arranged campaign for President. As co-writer, he helps provide quite a lot of funny times for himself and his comedic cohort, Bernie Mac. As director, he orchestrates the comedic goings-on with a sure and knowing hand, always making sure the proceedings never get too out-there. Yet there is another reason to savor "Head of State," a second factor in making said picture memorable. And that's Robin Givens's portrayal of Rock's ex. As Kim, she employs her high-toned beauty, her poised sexiness, and her unstoppable energy to create a portrait of a greedy, grasping, entirely opportunistic witch whom it is an absolute pleasure to be against. Thanks to her good looks and appeal, she is a bad girl whom it is a fervent delight to see being bad. Her smooth charm and unquenchable hotness nicely balance Rock's "homeboy" funniness and streetwise dynamism. She makes a really and truly worthy adversary for the star. It has been reliably reported that there was initial resistance to casting her in her first cinematic triumph "Boomerang" because there was fear that audiences would boycott said film out of dislike for "The Most Hated Woman in America." Robin Givens's performance in "Head of State" clearly shows that she is the kind of actress who deserves in demand from now until the end of time.

Why is it that in the quotes list, no one has listed Mays' first big speech? YOu know, the one where he turns off the TelePrompter (somewhat expected, from a rebel candidate), and sets off into a Chris Rock standup routine that turns the whole campaign around? It's one of the funniest pieces of standup I've ever seen--even funnier than when he compared the war to 'coming $87 million short on your register at the Gap, and then leading them in a war against Banana Republic because they have 'toxic tank tops,' only to find out when the workforce at the Gap has been reduced by half that Banana Republic doesn't sell tank tops.' (See the 2005 Oscars.) Bernie Mac fits wonderfully as the older brother turned running mate, and the rest of the movie fits wonderfully. Especially when Mays takes the love interest on a tour of DC (while making fun of anybody and everybody who has a building--Abe Lincoln ('okay, I'll free the slaves, but first you've got to build me a huge statue' (paraphrased)) to Oprah ('There's the Treasury. If you look closely, you'll see Oprah inside counting all her money).

Sadly, what started as a fairly reasonable idea soon collapsed into the usual Chris 'I'm The Man' Rock ego trip. Written and directed by Rock, the normally intelligent citizens of North America are forced to digest a Presidential campaign, fronted by a soon-to-be red lined neighborhood alderman. As more and more characters are introduced into the plot, the film turns into a black-on-white power trip. Despite a reasonable monologue delivered during the Presidential debate, Rock would have us believe that by using street-slang and 'the black attitude' towards guns, violence and unemployment, it got him elected to the highest seat in the land.Sorry, Chris, no.Nice try but your ego got there first.

Now, it's no doubt that Chris Rock is one of our most talented and funniest comedians. But stand-up comedy and motion pictures are two totally different realms. In stand-up, you purposely break the fourth wall, whereas in movies you do whatever you can not to break that wall, making the audience forget they're watching a movie and that they're really in this "world." Rock didn't only co-write the script, but he also directed. Mel Brooks, he is not. His amateurish direction is quite obvious in his use of extreme close-ups of actors mugging into the camera. Any good comedy director knows that comedy is best played in wide shots or in as few shots as possible. Otherwise, it's like you're shoving the punchline in the audience's face.One problem with Rock and his selection of movies (for the most part) is that his humor becomes marred by PG-13 ratings. Let's face it, he's a naturally vulgar comedian and we love him for that. We loved Eddie Murphy for being that way, back in his "Raw" and "Beverly Hills Cop" days. Just like how we're forced to see Murphy in corny, watered-down, PC flicks like "The Haunted Mansion" and "Showtime," we're forced to see Rock in flicks like "Down to Earth" (also written by him) and "Head of State." However, one movie where he was funny was "Nurse Betty," an R-rated film. Unfortunately, he was only given a supporting role.Back to Rock as a writer/director, he may know a lot about comedy, but he knows little about story structure and how to find the balance between comedy and drama. There are way too moments where the movie takes serious turns that dampen the film's broad comic tone (as was the problem, in bigger doses, with "Down to Earth"). But being that we're now in a sugar-coated, PC society, we can't even make a comedy without tacking on bundles of unnecessary sentiment.Now, onto the main problem with the film. The filmmakers took a brilliant premise that could've been transformed into a razor-sharp satire, and instead settled for a dull, predictable farce. If you were Mr. Magoo, you can see the punchlines for at least 80 percent of the gags coming a mile away. There's even a debate scene where Rock uses the Pee Wee Herman "I know you are, but what am I" line. High brow comedy, huh? The gag that I feared, in watching the film's many trailers and TV spots, is probably one of the funnier scenes--which is of course not saying a whole lot. I'm talking about the White House party scene that involves uptight white people dancing and singing along to Nelly's "Hot in Here." The jokes that do poke fun at today's political climate are treated with way too heavy of a hand. Just watch the gag where women are trained to be whores for the president, like they were doing basic training for the army. A joke that probably sounds funny on paper, but on screen it just comes off as silly.On a minor note, Bernie Mac plays a supporting role, and his talents are also completely wasted. Mac is another talented comedian who hasn't yet gotten the break he deserved in the movies. So far, he's starred in two consecutive duds: "Mr. 3000" and "Guess Who." If you purchase or rent the DVD for "Head of State," I must admit that Rock's commentary is pretty amusing. But that's the only positive thing I can say.