it's interesting to watch this movie again thirty years later, I think Ebert nails it with:
The subtext of “Dave” resembles the messages of many of the Capra movies: If people in power only behaved sensibly and with good will, a lot of our problems would solve themselves. Of course, it’s not that simple. But watching “Dave,” there were moments when I found myself asking, why isn’t it?
the movie leans into the mystique of the Royal Presidency and the president as a larger than life figure who just needs to do the sensible thing and guarantee a job for every American -- the classic program in movies -- and of course it has a political corruption scandal that would be barely a footnote today.
oh yeah and it's Kevin Kline but it totally could have been Robin Williams, he says Robin Williams lines with a Robin Williams intonation, honestly it could have been Robin Williams in In & Out too.
I keep forgetting what I was actually going to say about this movie, the way it raises this Rental Family scenario where maybe someone performing the role of president can do a better job than the actual president, in much the same way that someone pretending to be a good parent or a good spouse might do a better job.
of course, anyone can choose to perform a role! in But I'm A Cheerleader they tell liberated young Natasha Lyonne that she is free to be herself, but she's still a kid, she doesn't know who she is yet! it takes time to try on different roles for size, and you want to choose roles that lead you to be a better person and have a better life.
Barack Obama had a metaphor I really liked of his time as a young man, that he was trying different versions of what it meant to be a man like jackets, putting them on, wearing them around for a bit.
