The natural drama of politics has made its way into hundreds of movies over the years. The backstabbing battles, the scandalous schemes and the power to control the destiny of millions is fodder for gripping stories few filmmakers can resist.
While the crossover of politics and entertainment has a long-standing history, the lines between the two have increasingly blurred in recent years. One need only look to the governor’s mansion for an example.
Politics has also proven an easy target for humorous potshots and satire. With candidates such as former TV star Gary Coleman (”What you talkin’ about Willis?”) and porn star Mary Carey in the 2003 California governor’s race, the jokes would seem to write themselves.
In recent years, the popularity of political satire has been front and center. While most political figures have had to suffer the slings and arrows of public criticism, President George W. Bush has been a particularly prone target for media jokes. Even staunch Republicans got the giggles from Will Ferrell’s spot-on Bush impression on “Saturday Night Live,” and that’s just the beginning of a seemingly endless stream of “Dubya” themed wisecracks.
Shows such as the “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” and “The Colbert Report” continue to grab the attention of the much-coveted 18- to 24-year-old demographic. While such shows are set up as “fake” news outlets, they are increasingly becoming the main source of current event information for college-aged voters. While the shows do not deem themselves to be real news programs, their satirical take on the popular topics of the day are very much based in reality.
A recent study at East Carolina University attempted to determine if these programs had any sway on young voters’ opinions. According to the study by Dr. Jody Baumgartner and Dr. Jonathan S. Morris entitled “The Daily Show Effect,” the humor used on the “fake” news shows caused disdain among students towards political candidates and may contribute to a lower young voter turnout at the polls in the future.
Political satire has made its way to the big screen recently as well. The film “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan” opens today. The picture is based on Sacha Baron Cohen’s fictional character Borat Sagdiyev, culled from his skits on the HBO program “Da Ali G Show.”
In the film, Kazakh journalist Borat travels from the nation of Kazakhstan to America to gather interviews with real people for his documentary. Borat begins his journey in New York and makes his way across the nation to California. While billed as a comedy, Baron Cohen’s satiric Borat character uses backward idiocy to expose hypocrisy in American culture.
Film critic J. Hoberman of the Village Voice said, “Indeed, the man who invented Borat is a masterful improviser, brilliant comedian, courageous political satirist and genuinely experimental film artist.
“Borat makes you laugh, but Baron Cohen forces you to think.”
Another political comedy still in theaters is Robin Williams’ “Man of the Year.” Williams stars as Tom Dobbs, the host of a talk show similar in style to Jon Stewart’s program. Boosted by audience approval, Dobbs decides to make a run for the presidency. He takes his campaign on the road for a national bus tour. The film follows Dobbs as he brings a message of change to an eager public and falls into the conspiracies of the political machine.
With Nov. 7 right around the bend, politically themed entertainment may help boost attention at the polls, or just offer a hearty laugh and insightful angle on the state of the nation today.
As the popularity of stabbing political satire continues to grow and take root in the nation’s collective psyche, there’s no telling what kind of effects it might have on future elections, such as the 2008 presidential race.
