 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Man of the Year
- Review Date: February 19, 2007
- PG-13
- Genre: Comedy
- 2006
Common Sense Media says
Lame political comedy misses the mark.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that teens will likely be interested in this movie thanks to relentless promotion and its connection to Daily Show host Jon Stewart. Unfortunately, it just isn't that funny -- it could have been an amusing political commentary, but it missed the mark. Also, there are crude jokes galore (remember, it stars Robin Williams) about diapers, farts, "inhaling," pictures of naked women, and sex ("I did not have sex with that woman ... I wanted to, but I didn't").
What's the story?
In MAN OF THE YEAR, Robin Williams stars as Tom Dobbs, a TV host a la The Daily Show's Jon Stewart who jokes about running for president. One day during the warm up before his show, an audience member challenges Dobbs to actually run -- next thing you know, he's a major candidate and then, unbelievably, president. Turns out that a computer glitch in the voting process results in Dobbs' win. An evil software company has sold the United States on a national voting system -- but just weeks before the election, computer analyst Eleanor Green (Laura Linney) discovers an anomaly that company legal counsel Alan Stewart (Jeff-Goldblum) will do just about anything to keep secret.
Is it any good?
Man of the Year starts out as a comedy, but somewhere along the way, it turns into a conspiracy thriller. Unfortunately, it really can't decide what it wants to be -- All the President's Men, Wag the Dog, or Bulworth. If Williams had been given the chance to do any real comedy, this could have been a really funny movie, but the plot spirals into a sub-par thriller. And a subplot involving a romance between Dobbs and Green doesn't work at all.
If the filmmakers were going to take the thriller route, why not throw a few issues into the mix -- war, terrorists, something! As it is, this is a milquetoast movie that doesn't play on any of its actors' strengths, including Linney, the formidable Christopher Walken, who plays Dobbs' chain-smoking manager, and irascible Daily Show regular Lewis Black, who plays his curmudgeonly head-writer.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about whether a comedian could really run for president and win. If so, who would be a good candidate? What makes someone qualified to be president? Is it OK to have a president who isn't exactly a model of morality? What specific people and issues is the movie spoofing? What issues should be brought up in a presidential candidacy? Where does your family stand on topical issues like abortion, hydrogen fuel, war, and legal marijuana?
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- All members
- Parents
- Teens & kids
AGE
Surprise violence frightens 14 year old girls
I brought my daughter's friends to this for a bday party, and we almost left during the scene where a woman was stalked and attacked in her apartment. I thought it was going to be a comedy! That, plus several sexual innuendo and off color jokes made me apologize to all the girls and the mom's for bringing the girls to the movie. Very disappointing. Good for adults, only
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AGE
Really Funny
I thought it was really funny!! Some strong language, some bad sex jokes.
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AGE
........sigh........
This movie is very complicated. I did not understand what was going on because everything was changing from bad ot good I could not keep track.
DON'T WAIST YOUR TIME WITH THIS MOVIE ! ! ! !
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AGE
hate it
i think this movie was stupid and pointless>>there is lots of violence and it is just not a good movie and ik think kids should not see this movie that things in this movie are bad >>>>>>>> DO NOT LET YOUR CHILED SEE THIS MOVIE..........
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AGE
I lost six brain cells watching this.
This movie is not ok for kids 10 and under. i watched this with my 9 year old brother and he did not understand it to much, showing that its not ok for him.but im 12 and i saw that there was a lot of drug use and crude sexual references. this movie should only be for 11 and over.
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| Studio: | Universal Pictures |
| Director: | Barry Levinson |
| Cast: | Christopher Walken, Laura Linney, Robin Williams |
| Genre: | Comedy |
| Run time: | 115 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | October 12, 2006 |
| DVD release date: | February 20, 2007 |
| MPAA rating: | PG-13 |
| MPAA explanation: | language, including some crude sexual references, drug related material, and brief violence. |
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