W. (PG-13, 2008)

Oliver Stone's third presidential biography -- following JFK and Nixon -- tells the story of the nation's 43rd commander in chief: George W. Bush (Josh Brolin). The son of a former president, the film posits that Bush appears to have risen to the nation's highest office against expectations, given his aimless, hard-partying past. The film traces his metamorphosis from the 1960s to the present.

More restrained than Stone's other films, W.'s strength is Brolin, who appears to have inhabited Bush's skin. His facial expressions, cadence, carriage -- the actor has almost discomfitingly captured it all, turning in a nuanced performance that might even get some of Dubya's biggest critics to feel for the guy. That's because Brolin's (and Stone's) Bush is haunted by a longing for his father's approbation and driven to delineate differences between his and his father's presidencies. Surrounding him is a cadre of power brokers -- Dick Cheney (Richard Dreyfuss), Karl Rove (Toby Jones), and Donald Rumsfeld (Scott Glenn), for starters -- eager to yank his strings, even as Bush tries to declare independence from paternal control.

But here's the movie's weakness: For all the material that Stone had to work with, W. feels strangely tepid for a story that's still playing out in the headlines (and headed for the history books). The storytelling is jumbled and superficial, except for when it explores Bush's relationship with his father. But even then, the struggle seems paint-by-numbers (so does Thandie Newton's wooden portrayal of Condoleeza Rice, which is all twitches and grimaces). In the end, we don't end up knowing Bush all that well -- and nor, it appears, does Bush.

Studio: Emperor Motion Pictures
Director: Oliver Stone
Cast: Colin Hanks, Josh Brolin, Thandie Newton
Genre: Drama
Run time: 110 minutes
Theatrical release: October 16, 2008
DVD release: February 10, 2009
MPAA Rating: PG-13
MPAA explanation: language including sexual references, some alcohol abuse, smoking and brief disturbing war images.