Review of "W."

We reluctantly went to see "W." with some friends who were aching to see it this past weekend. Most of the criticisms I've heard have focused on how Bush if portrayed in the movie. If you are a Bush supporter, your view is that the movie is unfair, while critics of Bush feel that the movie does not go far enough in demonizing the 43rd president. I found that neither side is correct. The movie portrays Bush as a man with many flaws that form obstacles to his ambitions and explores his efforts to overcome those flaws. But the movie does have some quirks and weaknesses that stand out and lower it's overall value.

One major flaw is that the movie assumes that everyone knows who all the characters are. Bush refers to many of them by their nicknames only and it is up to the audience to figure them out. Some are fairly easy because they are very famous (or infamous as the case may be) but other (Georgie for instance) are not so obvious.

Next, while several of the performances were very good, some, especially that of Condoleezza Rice become parody's worthy of a SNL skit. I couldn't help cringing every time she spoke. I also didn't buy the portrayal of Powell or Barbary Bush.

There were also weird moments that are given unusual focus for no apparent reason. For instance, a bar-b-cue party hostess escorts Bush across the back yard and her stepping on a dropped corn cob is accentuated for no reason. The pretzel incident also seems out of place since it doesn't seem to impact the story in the least. Other moments are not given enough explanation, as when Bush collapses during the course of his three-mile run.

Overall, the movie was not that entertaining. We should have waited to rent it and then not even done that.