Head of State is a 2003 American political comedy film directed, written by, produced by and starring Chris Rock and co-starring Bernie Mac. It marked the directorial debut of Rock, who had previously worked as a writer, producer, and actor.
Critical reviews were mixed to negative, and the film was a box office disappointment. This was the last film by cinematographer Donald E. Thorin.
Plot
Mays Gilliam is the alderman for the 9th Ward in Washington, D.C. After learning he is likely to lose his job and getting dumped by his girlfriend, Kim, Gilliam is unexpectedly chosen as the Democratic Partycandidate for the 2004 presidential election after his party's original presidential and vice-presidential nominees die in a plane crash and he is lauded as a hero for saving a woman from an explosion. Assuming the election was already lost to incumbent Republican vice-president Brian Lewis, the Democrats decided to pick a likable but unwinnable minority candidate to improve their chances in the 2008 presidential election.
At first, Gilliam feels he will not be able to succeed as president because he would be representing the entire African-American populace, and does not want to do anything to damage his reputation. However, Gilliam begins to rise in the polls after his brother Mitch persuades him to speak out for what he believes in. He ditches the bland, boring, and uncontroversial speeches prepared for him and begins to talk honestly about major issues such as welfare, healthcare, income inequality, and society overall. Mays even finds time to romance Lisa Clark, a gas station attendant he crosses paths with, and who has been a huge supporter of Mays.
After Lewis runs a series of attack ads including one saying Gilliam supports cancer, Gilliam begins to fight back using what he claimed was "kissing" his opponent (taken from Bugs Bunny–Elmer Fudd cartoons). A part of this strategy includes dubbing a videotape of Osama bin Laden saying he hates America but loves Brian Lewis. This strategy gains Gilliam even more points in the polls.
As election day draws closer, Gilliam eventually learns the reason why he was chosen as the party candidate, fires some disloyal campaign operatives (despite them having reconciled with him afterwards), and chooses his brother as his running mate. He later has a debate with his opponent in which he manages to win the crowd over by speaking truth about American life. Finally, Gilliam ends up winning the presidency, and proposes to Lisa by saying he wants to make her his First Lady.
Cast
Chris Rock as Mays Gilliam, alderman, reluctant presidential candidate and later President of the United States.
Bernie Mac as Mitch Gilliam, elder brother of Mays, vice presidential candidate and later Vice President of the United States.
Rock said in HBO First Look that he got the idea from the 1984 Democratic presidential nominee Walter Mondale, who chose Geraldine Ferraro—a woman—as his running mate.[2] The Democrats knew they had little chance of defeating Ronald Reagan, but selected Ferraro in hopes of gaining female support.
Head of State received generally negative reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film maintains a score of 30% approval rating from 120 critics, with the critical consensus reading, "Head of State squanders its potentially ripe premise with watered-down satire and formulaic gags."[5] On Metacritic, the film maintains a score of 44/100, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[6]
Roger Ebert, writing for Chicago Sun-Times, gave the film 3/4 stars, writing that it's "an imperfect movie, but not a boring one and not lacking in intelligence."[7]
