Head of State (2003)

Director:

Chris Rock

Writers (WGA):

Chris Rock (written by) &
Ali LeRoi (written by)

Release Date:

28 March 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

The only thing white is the house.

Plot:

When a presidential candidate dies unexpectedly in the middle of the campaign, the Democratic party unexpectedly picks a Washington, D.C. alderman, Mays Gilliam (Rock) as his replacement .

Plot Keywords:

Party | Alderman | Washington D.C. | President | Homosexuality

Awards:

9 nominations

Cast

Chris Rock	...	Mays Gilliam
Bernie Mac	...	Mitch Gilliam
Dylan Baker	...	Martin Geller
Nick Searcy	...	Brian Lewis
Lynn Whitfield	...	Debra Lassiter
Robin Givens	...	Kim
Tamala Jones	...	Lisa Clark
James Rebhorn	...	Sen. Bill Arnot
Keith David	...	Bernard Cooper
Tracy Morgan	...	Meat Man
Stephanie March	...	Nikki
Robert Stanton	...	Advisor
Jude Ciccolella	...	Mr. Earl
Nate Dogg	...	Himself
Angie Mattson	...	Nate's girl

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for language, some sexuality and drug references.

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Iceland:L | Finland:K-7 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Canada:14A | Germany:6 | Ireland:15 | Norway:11 | Singapore:PG | Spain:T | Sweden:Btl | UK:12A | USA:PG-13 (certificate #39659)

Filming Locations:

Annapolis, Maryland, USA

Company:

DreamWorks SKG

Trivia:

Part of the presidential debate is a verbatim repeat of Monty Python's Argument Sketch.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: When the presidential candidates are visiting a school in Florida, the ambulance seen in the background belongs to the Pleasant Valley Volunteer Fire Department of Carroll County, Maryland.

Quotes:

Mays Gilliam: You ask for a pension, they give you a pen. Now what the hell am I supposed to do with a damn pen? I should just stab you in the neck with this pen.

Movie Connections:

References Malcolm X (1992)

Soundtrack:

Nite & Day

Toothless

The real, angry Chris Rock doesn't put in an appearance until the final moments of this political satire (directed and co-written by Rock) but it's not enough to rescue what has come before. Rock's fantasy of being the first African-American to achieve the White House (although he's initially set up to fail by spin doctors Dylan Baker and a surprisingly funny Lynn Whitfield) is somewhat toothless by Rock's own standards. The problem is his altered perception of himself as a film star (as opposed to the established HBO black equivalent of Dennis Miller): he phonily positions himself from the onset as cuddly, concerned for the constituents of the ward he's an alderman for and reasonably ignorant of national issues; he's finally allowed to become self-aware only when his older brother (the always welcome Bernie Mac) intercedes. You keep waiting for Rock to change but when he does, it's first into a playa that comes up with glib quips in response to standard questions. (With barely a mention of foreign policy, they seem a bit stale). Only in the final debate against his opponent (Nick Searcy) does he let loose with some honesty and only then do the jokes carry some weight. Rock, making his directorial debut, opts for the equivalent of a made-for-TV movie with a flat look, very mild gags (there are not nearly enough white fright jokes but there is a fundraiser that turns into a dance party with elderly WASPs doing the electric slide, and opening credits that state Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, George Bush and Hillary Clinton, among others, `are not in this movie') and very little interest in being taken seriously. Warren Beatty covered this turf far more handily in `Bulworth'. With Tamala Jones as his love interest, Robin Givens (cleverly cast as a gold digger) and, unfortunately, only a couple of bits from Tracy Morgan.