American Dreamz

Taking Hugh for Granted

American Idol, President George W. Bush, Simon Cowell, The War on Terror. American Dreamz (Paul Weitz, 2006) is a snapshot of everything we'd rather forget from the mid-2000s.

Martin Tweed (played by Hugh Grant) is the host of a talent show called American Dreamz and whilst he despises each new season, it's a hit with the ratings. Tweed decides it's time for a new and interesting batch of contestants, and sends out his team to find the weirdest bunch possible. Meanwhile, the President of the United States (played by Dennis Quiad) is becoming more and more depressed, and relies on his Chief of Staff (played by Willem Dafoe) to talk him through everything, even into appearing as a judge on the TV show. Perfect news for the terrorists who are planning to infiltrate the talent contest…

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For those of you that want to skip disclaimers, opening theme tunes, salutations, synopses and go straight to the film analysis, head to 06:45.