03/15/06 American Dreamz

American Dreamz (2006), directed by Paul Weitz

watched w/ Leslie, Brad B., Allyson & Lia; theater (NC State University Cinema; Raleigh, NC); free screening

Brought to you by the clever idiots who made "American Pie" and "About A Boy." Yes, stupid college humor that tries to come across as a moral tale of finding one's true self...just in the juvenile limitations of sexual innuendos, and fart jokes. However, the Weitz Bros. team tries to in this film take juvenile humor to a whole other level, challenging the American socio-political atmosphere of today. The film revolves around two major American phenomenons...the incredulous popularity of a certain American Idol-ish TV show called aptly "American Dreamz," and the equally incredulous second re-election of one idiot savant president of the country (me- thinks they may be jabbing at Dub-ya here, just a hunch). The ridiculous nature of both popular TV and politics collide head-on here in a ratings battle of the minds. A certain terrorist operative from Afghanistan is instructed to live with his relatives in America, where he accidentally ends up on the wildly entertaining Dreamz show, where he can finally showcase his flashy love for showtunes. On the other hand, an idiot president is trying to fulfill his newly elected 2nd term to office, while struggling to come to grips with his new found interest in what it means to be "Ruler of the Free World." The president is basically a puppet to someone quite resembling V.P. Cheney (played brilliantly by character actor Willem Dafoe), in all his male-pattern baldness glory. Hi-jinks ensue as many storylines intertwine over these two major forces, with sex, bombs, and pop music (not quite drugs & rock-n-roll). It remained highly stereotypical in a lot of the portrayals, but went right for it with the same juvenile humor. It was silly, but it worked enough for me to laugh. Don't take it too seriously, as you must certainly not take the real-life targets of the humor seriously either.

3 out of 5 stars