Directed by: Param Gill Written by: John Buchanan / Param Gill Genre: Comedy / Fantasy |
Bad President
Bad President begins its fictional narrative a tad before Donald Trump decides to run for president of the united states. Did I say fictional? That's a big "my bad" because even though it all seems too crazy to be real... it is. But you already knew that. As the film kicks off we are introduced to the king of hell, the devil (Eddie Griffin), and his cohorts Shame, Misery, and Anger portrayed by Robert Amico, Dawna Lee Heising, and Justin Shenkarow as they sit around scheming. Hell isn't what it used to be and an influx of new souls is needed. A lot of them.
The subject of Trump comes up and although the devil, who calls himself Luther by the way, thinks Trump is nothing more than a loser, he is persuaded to entertain the idea of what a Trump presidency could do for hell. A man of this caliber could really stir the proverbial pot if he was elected president; that pot could do a lot of good for hell's soul economy. The devil proceeds to convince Trump he needs the devil's help to win the presidency but Trump at first refuses, worried he'll lose his soul... even though he's not even sure he has a soul. It's after Luther starts a smear campaign of his own, against Trump, that Donald finally decides he could really use the devilish help, and Luther himself still thinks Trump is a loser, but a loser with certain valuable gifts. His talent for misdirection. Everyone knows how this film ends because we now call Donald president Trump. Mission accomplished, but the narrative of this title is geared more to those who remember how things went down. Supporters are going to complain and haters are going to hate but laugh along the way. The political stance of writers John Buchanan and Param Gill is pretty evident and it's that stance that makes all the jokes work. But even Trump supporters have to admit that it really is a miracle Trump was ever elected, with all that went down. Bad President does a great job posing the "what if?" theory because honestly, if you take out divine intervention how the hell did Donald Trump ever win? Buchanan and Gill showcase their version of divine intervention and it actually is quite amusing. The various celebrity characters that appear in this film are also pretty funny, including those that appear as themselves ( Stormy Daniels ) but Jeff Rector as Trump is an awesome thing to behold. Maybe not always awesome when it comes to the funny eyebrows and wig, but awesome enough to play the character with that hint of reality attached. Eddie Griffin may be the ultimately cool devil, but Rector is the exact opposite and it more or less works in favor of the film. Since Bad President isn't all that long to begin with, there's no reason a person should skip out on this title. Funny and fairly well done for a micro budget title, Bad President is just what the doctor ordered. A little bit of comedic therapy for the crazy times we all live in. This title could potentially stir up some bad comments from those who love President Trump, but haters gonna hate. This is satire and although not the be all end all of the genre, still funny enough to warrant a recommendation from me. Thank you for reading. |
