American Dreamz
Grade: B+
It’s a comedy, it’s a satire, it’s a political commentary. American Dreamz is a little all over the place, but that’s what makes it so doggone refreshing! Lots of inside jokes for fans of American Idol. Plenty of material skewering our current president. A funny take on the state of cultural relations in this country, and also on the trend towards instant celebrity. There are a lot of parallels which are brought out in amusing ways. It’s really very clever. Mandy Moore is the star wanna-be, Hugh Grant plays the Simon Cowell type, Dennis Quaid is the commander in chief, and Marsha Gay Harden wears a convincing Laura Bush do to portray the first lady. Willem Dafoe is almost unrecognizable with his Cheneyesque head as the president’s chief of staff. A nice comic turn for each of these actors. |