Funny movie and I´ve seen a lot of times with my pals and family!

You can tell that this was probably heavily cut down, maybe even from script phase. It looks like Chris Rock really did want this movie to have some kind of message, but either he lost his nerve or he did not know what it should say.His alderman is made out to be a good guy who sincerely wants to help people. Why does he then turn 180, and becomes the guy who says everything that's wrong, but doesn't really provide any real solutions to the problems.There is also a very schizophrenic feel about the show. It looks like Chris Rock (who should be blamed, because he is the director too) thought he should make his "Dave" or "The American President", but he also wants to make his "wayne's World" too. The character of his ex, played extremely badly by Robin Givens, feels copied from that particular movie. It could have been funny but it feels simply out of place in this serio-comedy.And what is Tracy Morgan doing in this, other than turn people off. His character should have definitely be voted the most superfluous of the century.Anyway, the good moments are the scenes between Rock and Dylan Baker, because he can actually act and gives the character a lot more than it deserves. The scenes with Rock gives his first impromptu speech also delivers, but it is all for naught because he doesn't give any answer.

This piece of political satire, starring comedian Chris Rock, who also co-wrote it and made his directorial debut with it, was released in 2003, but I didn't see it, nor did I even hear of it, until a couple years ago, when it came on TV and I watched it. I'm not sure if I even really knew exactly what it was about before I saw it, or what I was in for, but it turned out that what I was in for was a political spoof filled with mediocre gags, with only occasional funny moments. I watched it a for the second time last night, and it didn't seem to really improve, so I see no point in watching it a third time.Mays Gilliam is a neighbourhood alderman in Washington D.C. Unfortunately, he ends up losing his girlfriend and being fired from his job, so things aren't looking up for him, but it's about to change. A presidential candidate, running against vice president Brian Lewis, has died in a plane crash, and Gilliam is soon selected to replace him! As the election draws near, Gilliam faces a number of challenges, trying to rise significantly in the polls (he starts out very low). It helps when his brother, Mitch, becomes his running mate, but it doesn't help that Mays doesn't know the real reason why he was chosen to run (because they were sure he would lose, and increase the chances of somebody else in their party winning the next election), nor does it help that Lewis is going to great extremes to discredit Gilliam with his campaign ads! One example of an attempt at humour that fails is the scenes involving Gilliam's girlfriend (or ex-girlfriend), Kim, played by Robin Givens. She first appears just before she leaves Gilliam, with her tirade about how terrible he is, which is supposed to be funny, but I found it, well, maybe not quite annoying, but close. I would say the same goes for most of the other scenes involving the character (the film shows her trying to win back Gilliam after she hears about him running for president), but she's only a small part of the film. Bernie Mac, who amused me a lot when I watched "The Bernie Mac Show" a few years ago, plays Mitch Gilliam in this movie, and some moments involving him are amusing, such as how the two Gilliam brothers greet each other by socking one another in the stomach. (Since Mac died just last month, I guess now is an appropriate time for me to say R.I.P.) However, the humour, no matter which actors/characters are involved, rarely rises above mediocrity, and since the laughs are supposed to be a big part of "Head of State", that's not a good thing.As I pointed out, and as you may have already known before, Chris Rock made his directorial debut with this 2003 comedy. Since then, he has directed another comedy movie, 2007's "I Think I Love My Wife", which he also co-wrote, like he did with this film. I haven't seen that second full-length directorial project from Rock, but it doesn't appear to be much more popular than this first one of his, so I might end up seeing it, but I'm in no hurry. As for "Head of State", which I have now seen twice but still can't write a very positive review of, I've seen MUCH worse comedies from this decade, the worst probably being "Epic Movie" (probably the worst excuse for a comedy I've ever seen), and the humour in this film is high above the disgustingly puerile "humour" you'll find in films like that, but this comedy still doesn't quite cut it. Due to the lack of laughs, I can see why it has never received very much attention.

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).