"Dave" tells the adventures
of the positive, upbeat Dave Kovic (Kevin Kline) who not only runs
a temporary employment agency, but makes extra money impersonating
the current President Bill Mitchell (Kevin Kline) as he has an amazing
resemblance to this U.S. President. When the president has a crippling,
incapacitating stroke, while making love to a secretary, the look-a-like
is secretly put into the president's place, because of political ambitions
of Bill Mitchell's Chief of Staff Bob Alexander (Frank Langella).
To complicate things for Dave, is the fact that the real president
is a womanizing, slimy politician, and his wife hates his guts. Will
she notice the difference in Dave's character, and put two and two
together?
This entertaining, funny screenplay was written by the talented Gary
Ross, who also wrote such enjoyable films as "Big," "Lassie,"
and "Pleasantville." The philosophical bent of the screenplay
is written in a liberal way of thinking, and some say that it is a
bit one-sided in its message, though it never identifies a political
party to any of the characters. It does define two types of politicians;
those who strive to serve the people, and those who strive to serve
themselves and gain power, even at the expense of those who voted
them into office.
The talented director, Ivan Reitman, does a fabulous
job keeping the pacing tight, and the laughs coming, as he knows
how to direct actors in a comedy, to bring out the spirit of the
script. Reitman also directed such films as "Ghostbusters,"
"Ghostbusters 2," "Kindergarten Cop," and "Evolution."
Kevin Kline is a delight as the presidential look-a-like.
He brings much charm to the role, one of his most audience pleasing
characterizations in years. When Dave Kovic comes back to his apartment
one late afternoon, he finds two Secret Service Agents sitting in
his living room. They hire him to impersonate President Mitchell,
to be a decoy who is to walk down the hallway, wave to the crowds
and go into a waiting car. Halfway back to his apartment, the car
turns around and returns to the White House, where an extremely
illegal proposition is strongly suggested by both Bob Alexander
and Alan Reed (Kevin Dunn I), when they want to keep President Mitchell's
debilitating stroke which happened with a mistress.
Charles Grodin has fun as an accountant buddy, of Kline's, Murray
Blum. When Kline attempts to balance the budget, he calls in Grodin
to help out. Grodin makes the most of a key supporting role, playing
a character that discovers the truth in several situations that
really disturb him, and Grodin has great comical looks as he truth
dawns on him. Dave has the habit of talking Blum into doing things
he really doesn't want to do, because he is a great friend. After
helping Dave with the budget, he vehemently warns Dave to "get
out as soon as you can!"
Sigourney Weaver, as the president's estranged wife, Ellen Mitchell,
who is well aware of her husband's infidelities, give a solid, classy
performance. Her character goes through quite an arc in the course
of the film, as she comes to fall in love with this man who is NOT
her husband. As Dave's behavior and demeanor doesn't match what
Bill Mitchell's would be, she suspects that Dave is not her husband,
and she tricks him into telling her the truth.
Kline and Weaver sparkle together. My favorite sequence of scenes
with these two begins when Weaver finds out the truth about Dave,
and he takes her down to the basement to see her incapacitated husband.
Afterwards,Kline and Weaver sneak out of the White House for a moonlight
get together. They get stopped for a traffic violation, and Dave
launches into his act of imitating President Mitchell, singing the
song "Tomorrow." Ellen, who can't sing very well, joins
in for the finale. Having convinced the cops that they are merely
look-a-likes, they go and have a moonlight picnic. This scene has
warmth, without being overly romantic.
Ben Kingsley shines as the put-upon Vice President
Nance. Kingsley conveys quiet dignity, on the screen, as well as
any actor alive.
Ving Rhames is convincing as the stoic secret service
agent who is assigned to protect Dave.
Frank Langella plays a great bad guy, Bill Mitchell's
Chief of Staff Bob Alexander, who schemes to become the next president,
in any manner possible. My favorite scene with Langella opens with
a White house tour group going through the White House. Suddenly
Frank Langella character, Bob Alexander,who is absolutely furious,
storms by the group, seething with anger, because Dave took him
at his word, and found a way to save the homeless shelters. This
means more trouble for Dave. When Dave, dismisses Alexander as his
chief of Staff, the fireworks begin as Alexander makes it public
the financial illegal shenanigans of the real President Mitchell.
The last 25 minutes is most entertaining as Dave
finds a clever way, with the help of his friends to creatively back
out of his presidential gig, and let the real comatose president
take his place, with the Vice-President taking the reins of responsibility.
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