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Comedy superstar Robin Williams (RV, The Birdcage, Mrs. Doubtfire) plays Tom Dobbs, a comedian who made it to the top by telling it like it is. When he decides to run for president to unleash his trademark comic rants on the powers that be, something extraordinary happens -- he wins! From the director of Good Morning, Vietnam and Wag the Dog comes an irreverant comedy hit with a hilarious all-star cast that is sure to win your vote for best comedy of the year!

I really liked the story line of this movie. Well, up to a point anyway. Tom Dobbs is a national television-icon -- imagine if Oprah moved to a prime-time slot and started telling hilarious jokes. A suggestion from an audience member to announce his candidacy for president seemed like a great publicity stunt and next thing Dobbs knew, he was the President Elect.

So far so good.

And then a lonely, out-of-work character played so adorably by Laura Linney comes into his life and we have feelings reminiscent of Michael Douglas and Annette Bening in The American President. Sure the feelings were as much cliché as they were warm and fuzzy, but it was nice.

And then it happened.

Gone were the shadows of Douglas and Bening as the movie began to borrow pages from, of all things, a Ryan Phillippe movie - that I do not recommend to anyone (Antitrust). For awhile I sincerely thought that the story was ruined and there was no hope left, but they surprised me with how well the movie ended.

For as crass and aggressive as Robin Williams has been as a stand-up comedian, he has played some incredibly profound and likeable characters. This role, like many others, really showed how talented he is. I thought he was great, even though the movie was a little less about him and more about the situation in which he finds himself. I would have loved more story about who Tom Dobbs actually was rather than the ridiculous plot turns that the movie featured instead. Let's put it this way, would you rather watch more Robin Williams or some silly side story involving Jeff Goldblum?

Jokes about Jeff Goldblum aside, the movie really had a great cast. Man of the Year starred Robin Williams, Laura Linney, Christopher Walken and Lewis Black. Christopher Walken was Tom Dobbs's manager and he, as always, was wildly entertaining. And Lewis Black was surprisingly subdued, which is a little uncharacteristic for him, but he did very well.

If I could miraculously remove the part of the movie which reminded me of Punch Drunk Love in a way - where the attempt to show true true human tenderness is almost eclipsed by the disturbed nature of the plot and characters - I would recommend this movie to everyone. As it stands, I can only say that the movie certainly has the merit to deserve to be seen, but be warned.

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