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Movies / Upcoming / Man of the Year
Man of the Year

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Man of the Year (2006)

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Reviews Counted:139

Fresh:29

Rotten:110

Average Rating:4.4/10

Consensus: Weakened by second-half attempts at thriller and romance, this presidential comedy also fails to hit any sharp political notes, resulting in a confused and unsatisfying mess.

Runtime: 1 hr 55 mins

Genre: Comedies

US Box Office: $37,442,180

Synopsis: Robin Williams and writer-director Barry Levinson, who worked together on 1987's GOOD MORNING VIETNAM and 1992's TOYS, reunite for the political thriller/romantic comedy MAN OF THE YEAR. Williams... Robin Williams and writer-director Barry Levinson, who worked together on 1987's GOOD MORNING VIETNAM and 1992's TOYS, reunite for the political thriller/romantic comedy MAN OF THE YEAR. Williams stars as Tom Dobbs, the host of a comedy talk show who, fed up with the political system, suddenly decides to run for president. So off he goes on a national bus tour, joined by his manager, Jack Menken (Christopher Walken), and his head writer, Eddie Langston (Lewis Black), bringing his message of change to an eager public. Meanwhile, Eleanor Green (Laura Linney), who works for Delacroy, the company that has developed the voting machines being used by the government, discovers a serious glitch in the program that alters the results of the election. She tries to tell the company's CEO (Rick Roberts) and chief counsel/spokesman (Jeff Goldblum), but they want everything hushed up so their stock prices aren't affected and their upcoming international deal goes through. Unable to hold back the truth, Green looks to Dobbs for help while being hunted down by Delacroy. Levinson, the director of such successful films as DINER, AVALON, and WAG THE DOG--the latter also set in the political arena--has crafted a fast-paced, seriocomic look at 21st-century America, especially since the possible voting problems encountered in the presidential elections of 2000 and 2004. Part Jon Stewart, part Bill Maher, part Ross Perot, Dobbs is a funnyman who decides to do something about the sorry state of the country. [More]

Starring: Robin Williams, Christopher Walken, David Alpay, Lewis Black

Starring: Robin Williams, Christopher Walken, David Alpay, Lewis Black, Jeff Goldblum, Laura Linney, Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, James Carville, Rick Roberts, Dave Nichols, Faith Daniels

Director: Barry Levinson

Director: Barry Levinson
Producer: James G. Robinson
Composer: Graeme Revell
Studio: Universal Pictures

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Reviews for Man of the Year

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
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N/R

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Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment Comment
03/02/07
Sydney Morning Herald
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It's not a simple genre film, and some will find it complicated to digest for that reason, but if you're up for a bit of intelligent stimulation, this will reward

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
02/23/07
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: NPR.org | comment Comment
10/18/08
Bob Mondello
Bob Mondello
NPR.org

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sacramento News & Review | comment Comment
08/07/08
Jim Lane
Jim Lane
Sacramento News & Review

Uneven, but never less than entertaining.

Full Review Source: Eye for Film | comment Comment
12/07/07
Amber Wilkinson
Amber Wilkinson
Eye for Film

Man of the Year has some nice ideas and a handful of excellent scenes, but it struggles to find the right tone and is hamstrung by a ridiculous plot point.

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
11/02/07
Matthew Turner
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon

Too compromised to be more than a reasonably pleasurable entertainment, as if it is scared about what it is saying about the American political process.

Full Review Source: This is London | comment Comment
11/02/07
Derek Malcolm
Derek Malcolm
This is London

This being Robin Williams, it's hard to find his routines as vote-winningly hilarious as they're meant to be.

Full Review Source: Daily Telegraph | comment Comment
11/02/07
Tim Robey
Tim Robey
Daily Telegraph

There are good moments, although it doesn’t work properly either as a satirical thriller or a rom-com.

Full Review Source: Financial Times | comment Comment
11/02/07
Karl French
Karl French
Financial Times

Cynicism or stupidity? It's hard to say which has the run of this idiotic satire in which Robin Williams plays a talk-show host who runs for president on a ticket of cleaning up politics.

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
11/02/07
Cath Clarke
Cath Clarke
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

One of the least convincing political satires of the millennium so far - no bite, no vision and no laughs.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
11/02/07
Jon Fortgang
Jon Fortgang
Channel 4 Film

Political comedy morphs into attempted thriller in this confused, fitfully entertaining film.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
11/02/07
Anna Smith
Anna Smith
BBC

Trust me, a sloppily-edited, unmanageable insult to the intelligence with far too many shortcomings to deserve any further analysis.

Full Review Source: EURWeb | comment Comment
04/27/07
Kam Williams
Kam Williams
EURWeb

Levinson pose les bonnes questions par le biais d'une démarche artistique un peu laborieuse, mais qui n'en demeure pas moins directe et efficace.

Full Review Source: Panorama | comment Comment
04/20/07
Jean-François Vandeuren
Jean-François Vandeuren
Panorama

Eschewing personality, it mistakes pandering for insight.

Full Review Source: Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia) | comment Comment
03/15/07
Mark Palermo
Mark Palermo
Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

If you look the other way and go with it regardless, Man of the Year can be an idealistic pleasure.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
03/01/07
Frank Lovece
Frank Lovece
Film Journal International

Man of the Year, the weaker brother of the Wag the Dog and Good Morning Vietnam polital satire family, relies heavily on conceptual humour and Robin Williams' shenanigans to carry the boneless plot through.

Full Review Source: Movies for the Masses | comment Comment
02/19/07
Joseph Proimakis
Joseph Proimakis
Movies for the Masses

The Robin Williams you love. A very entertaining movie and a showcase for the brilliant Robin Williams.

Full Review Source: Moviehole | comment Comment
02/17/07
Clint Morris
Clint Morris
Moviehole

The opening narration by Christopher Walken starts sucking the life out of the film before it gets a chance to gain any momentum.

Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | comment Comment
01/14/07
Robert Roten
Robert Roten
Laramie Movie Scope

It didn’t know if it wanted to be a satirical comedy or a political thriller.

Full Review Source: 3BlackChicks Review | comment Comment
12/30/06
Kamal  'The Diva' Larsuel
Kamal 'The Diva' Larsuel
3BlackChicks Review
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 >> >|
all

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