Bob Roberts (1992)

 Scathing look at politics
A documentary filmmaker follows the campaign of folk singer-turned-senatorial candidate Bob Roberts (Tim Robbins). Roberts is ultra-conservative, espousing a return to pre-hippie values and saying it's okay to be rich and successful. His crazed fans idolize the flag-waving Bible-thumper but there's one man who casts aspersions on him: Small-time journalist Bugs Raplin (Giancarlo Esposito) claims he has evidence Roberts is involved with shading dealings, and Roberts' handlers don't like that one bit.

Tim Robbins wrote and directed this mockumentary, filmed in shaky-cam. It races from one campaign scene to another, painting a picture of a wholesome, inspired candidate who is above reproach - but if you know Robbins, you know it's all done sarcastically and in fact, shows Roberts to be a slick, prepackaged, underhanded liar at best and a law-breaking criminal at worst.

This film makes right-wing politicians out to be nasty and even dangerous hypocrites, so how much you'll like it depends pretty much on your own political slant. For me, it was okay, 3.5 stars. Bottom line: It's a good movie to watch during this election year. February 9, 2008

 great film
Bob Roberts is very funny and if your shrewd enough to understand it all it applies to both parties in many ways and show's how blind Patriotism turns the fool September 7, 2007

 1990s op-ed comedy
BOB ROBERTS (1992)
directed by Tim Robbins
approx. 109 minutes

This movie is Tim Robbins' deeply cynical take on Republican campaigning in the early 1990s. The movie follows folk singer Bob Roberts on the campaign trail as an investigative journalist tries to uncover his shady past. The cast includes Giancarlo Esposito (from Spike Lee's 'DO THE RIGHT THING') and award winning writer Gore Vidal as well as Robbins himself. This is a well made movie with great performances all around.

The idea behind the Roberts character is that he seems rebellious but endorses a socially conservative status quo agenda. There are several references to real life scandals and high level corruption. The level of satire is sometimes "dead on"... I personally thought the "scare ad" was believable and hilarious. Other times the humor is cheap and predictable, like the clip where Bob's supporters are shown giving him a Hitler salute. Anyone familiar with Robbins' own politics probably knows what to expect when the movie addresses issues such as the 1st Gulf War or Iran-Contra. But for a movie so critical, it doesn't really advocate anything. This basically makes "Anyone But Roberts" sound appealing.

The problem with this movie is not the jokes or even the criticisms, its the "Us. vs. Them" writing. On some level Tim Robbins should heed his own criticism: he uses the Bob Roberts character to pull a Bob Roberts move (alienate your detractors and radicalize your base). Robbins is absolutely right to say that politics have sunk to the level of a cheap pop stardom but he won't win any new converts by portraying them as naive cultish dupes. Obviously this is mostly used for comic effect, but I think it would've made a better (or at least more interesting) movie to show some of the "undecided" voters who were still making up their mind about Roberts. After all, its the undecideds that decide elections. Robbins isn't really interested in addressing that, though. This sort of shows how Robbins views American voters: they should've already made up their minds, and fit into the categories of selfish zealots or (presumably) liberal progressives. This "whose side are you on?" style is the attitude that has kept American politics at such a braindead level for so many years.

Kudos to Robbins for trying to shed light on the issues surrounding the National Security Council. The movie is also commendable in that it discusses CIA complicity in the South American drug trade. Its a shame the movie is so consciously divisive. March 22, 2007

 Bob Roberts
Clever parody of the state of current American "politics" - sometimes too painful to watch. July 2, 2006

 A TOO TRUE BLUEPRINT FOR THE ROVE/BUSH CAMPAIGN TRAIL
watch this film and be afraid
very
very
afraid

This is where we are now

THe parody of the Reagan staged "shooting" is incredible and bold, the send up of the phoney "leftist" nature of Saturday Night Live is right on target, the rest is just plain scary it is so, so true.

even the manipulation of GOd and religion for anti-religious and uncharitable politics of greed . . . this we see today.

THe reference ot his sheep-bots as his soldiers, ready to die in a war for oil . . .

Bob Roberts is a prophet. Also get his EMbedded. And Bulworth. June 30, 2006

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