Rating: 
Summary: Hollywood's Same Old Bias
Review: As a staunch young conservative (I'm 15), I find it extremely difficult to watch. [This is] a movie with a president more liberal than Bill Clinton. He's a member of the ACLU, supports gun control and is for evironmental rights; that would make Al Gore seem tame in comparison. I also dislike the way the Republican candidate, Bob Rumson, is portrayed as an ignorant bigot who doesn't know anything about the president and his girlfriend; and the scene I dislike most of all is his press confrence speech near the end, when he says, in a perfect Hollywood liberal sequence: "Yes, I am a card-carrying member of the ACLU. Why aren't you, Bob? Now this is an organization who's sole purpose is defending the Bill of Rights." ...And guess who wrote this film? Not Rob Reiner, but Aaron Sorkin, the same mastermind behind The West Wing, ... Any smart person would not watch this ignorant, biased film. Stay far, FAR away from it, ...
Rating: 
Summary: Makes me happy every time!
Review: This is an all time favorite of mine and absolutely guaranteed to lift my spirits each time I watch it. Michael Douglas plays somewhat against his usual type as a likeable, widowed, well-meaning single father who is also the President of the United States, Andrew Shepherd. He becomes romantically interested in an environmental lobbyist, Sidney Ellen Wade (Annette Benning) which turns out to cause a lot of problems for both of them. These two high-powered actors manage to humanize their characters into ordinary, likable people who are just trying to fall in love despite unbelievable opulence of surroundings, ugly political maneuvering and living inside a media fishbowl of publicity. Along the way, there are plenty of funny, heartwarming moments including a couple of very funny telephone calls. (Imagine what YOU would do if you suddenly received a call from someone who claimed to be the President of the United States) David Paymer, Michael J. Fox and Martin Sheen are excellent in their supporting roles as advisors to the President and Shawna Waldron is wonderful as the 1st daughter. If you love humorous dialog, beautiful, nearly fairy-tale settings and happy endings, be sure to see this movie. You won't be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: Wouldn't Get My Vote
Review: Michael Douglas plays a largely smug President (think "Bill Clinton") and Annette Benning plays his wiley, intellectually-equal sparing mate (think "Hilary Clinton") in life and love as a journalist assigned to the White House Press Corps in THE AMERICAN PRESIDENT (forget all about Monica Lewinsky, Gennifer Flowers, and the other women). Ugh. Politics. I suppose I would rate the film higher if either of their performances in such a contrived romance were marginally believable, but, sadly, I've always thought this film was one large Hollywood misfire aimed at showing how evil Republicans are and how righteous Democrats are, which Rob Reiner basically confirmed in the press tour. If the story had, instead, focused on the budding love of the principals and then given them true credibility (Benning gives in WAY too fast as a journalist and professional, and Douglas struts around making decisions that impact millions of people both positively and negatively as if he had spoken to the burning bush instead of Moses), I probably would've enjoyed the picture more. Outside of Douglas's grandstanding speech at the end (which is given excessive and unnecessary dead weight by a seemingly Earth-shaken Richard Dreyfuss as a 'mean and nasty' Republican senator), there are very few memorable moments here. The love affair happens too fast and involves too little consequence (other than humorous ones), and it's all neat, tidy, and acceptable as far as the pollsters would have the American people think. The secondary players here end up doing a far better job than the principals as they're not suckered into the obvious politicking of the film. Had Rob Reiner not been so much in love with Bill Clinton or had he decided on using a better role model as President, again it may've all ended up getting a second term (think "sequel").
Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful movie, but DVD is poor quality
Review: I've always enjoyed watching this movie on TNT, which is what compelled me to purchase it on DVD. Michael Douglas is charming and believable as a man who falls in love while facing the continuous challenges of being both president of the United States and a politician fighting hard to get re-elected. The set design and the dramatic scenes with Douglas and his "cabinet members" and "high-level military personnel" were also very believable. However, the quality of the disk is grainy, and the "movie screen" format not only shrinks the images, but it also distorts them. The movie's frames "hang" in spots, suspending the action for seconds at a time on and off throughout the film. My recommendation: Stick to TNT's reruns.
Rating: 
Summary: Good but Unrealstic
Review: The performances carry this one. Douglas is very good (as usual), Bening is very sympathetic and Sheen, for once, isn't melodramatic. The film would have been better without the strong liberal themes. The problem isn't that the characters are liberal. The problem is that their liberalism is presented in such a sanctimonious manner that it often feels as if the filmmakers are ridiculing you if you disagree with their views. Also, any president foolish enough to make that impromptu speech to the press would deserve the pounding he/she would definitely take in the next election. Being so outspoken on any highly volatile political issue, such as guns or abortion, is (unfortunately) very unrealistic and unbelievable for a national politician of either party.
Rating:
Summary: ...Liberal...
Review: Ah, the 90's! Never was the connection between America's left wing and Hollywood more apparent. For the first time in twelve years, we had a Democratic president. For almost all in the entertainment industry, the secular Messiah had arrived in the form of Bill Clinton. Suddenly everyone wanted to make a presidential movie. The American President was just one in a steady stream; there was also Nixon, JFK, Dave, and Thirteen Days. With the exception of Nixon, (which focused on the pitfalls of being a Republican) the rest of them showed us how great Democratic candidates are. The American President is no exception. The plot is basically this: 1. President is a widower, and a really swell guy. 2. President is a really swell father to his young daughter. The inclusion of the little girl is an all too common means of manipulating the audience's emotions, so cliche' its not even laughable. 3. President has a swell team of advisors (including Michael J. Fox, who is suspiciously reminsicent of George Stephenopolis. 4. The president has a problem with his convictions as a president, and plays it safe on issues like gun control. 5. The president has an affair with Annette Benning. 6. The Affair turns him into a man of conviction, and so he takes a stand against gun control. That about wraps it up. It's a rather shamelessly biased and simplistic film. You were warned.
Rating:
Summary: AFI's Greatest Love Stories: #75 The American President
Review: Okay, to weigh in on the key points of discussion that keep popping up with regards to this particular romantic comedy. First, I would have liked "West Wing" if I had never seen "The American President" and I would have liked "The American President" even if it was not a test balloon for "The West Wing." Second, of course a romantic comedy about the President of the United States is going to have a liberal in the White House. Conservatives are either (a) not that funny or (b) do not like to be laughed at, take your pick. Third, the part that bugs me the most is the "character" issue everybody keeps alluding to. I know part of the premise of this movie is "What is Hillary died and Bill Clinton was all alone in the White House and Chelsea was giving him dating tips?", but does that automatically mean we have to give all his sexual foibles to the fictional Andrew Shepherd? The man says he has only loved two women in his life and that it has been a long time since he has done anything sexual, so what is this character issue? Somebody explain it to me...like I was a six year old. The actual plot of "The American President" is as old as the hills: boy becomes President, boy meets girl, boys falls for girl, girl falls for boy, and the entire country has an opinion. But ultimately the story does not matter because we stop flipping through the channels when we come to this movie on television because of the snappy dialogue and the excellent acting performances. Somehow screenwriter Aaron Sorkin got from "A Few Good Men" and "Malice," to this choice piece of political drama. Michael Douglas turns in his best romantic comedy performance as President Andrew Shepherd while Annette Bening plays Sydney Ellen Wade, a paid political lobbyist who discovers she has more of the President of the United States than his ear. But ultimately "The American President" features one of those ensemble casts that makes you sit and shake your head in wonder. Actually, it is rather depressing to think that the actual occupants of the West Wing are no where as smart or as glib as this crew: Martin Sheen ("Come, friends, let us away"), Anna Deavere Smith ("I think the important thing is not to make it look like we're panicking"), Samantha Mathis ("Sir, I don't understan?"), and David Paymer ("Well, I could explain it better, but I'd need charts, and graphs, and an easel"), and in my choice for the best performance of his career, Michael J. Fox ("Can I just state very clearly I can't be part of anything illegal"). Did I mention the dialogue is really good in this film? However, the film's only Oscar nomination was for Original Musical score. Go figure. Personally, I do not think the American people would turn upon a widowed President who started dating. But then I have this pesky idealistic streak that refuses to go away. This is a witty, literate romantic-comedy that harkens back to Hollywood's golden age. Ultimately the film's political leanings have little to do with our enjoyment because we know nothing ever happens with issues like gun control and fuel emissions in the real world and Bob Rumson's problem is not that he is running for President but that he is trying to break up the romance between these two kids. Most Romantic Lines: (1) "Well, first of all, the two hundred pairs of eyes aren't focused on me. They're focused on you. And the answers are Sydney Ellen Wade, and because she said yes." (2) "Perhaps I didn't properly explain the fundamentals of the slowdown plan." (3) "I've loved two women in my life. I lost one to cancer and I lost the other because I was too busy keeping my job to do my job. Well, that ends right now." Of course, these are not the best lines in the movie because those are all about politics more than romance. If you like "The American President," then check out these other films on the AFI's list: #74 "Woman of the Year" and #31 "The King and I." Why? Well, because in the former you find how hard it is to mix politics and love and in the latter you have a leader whose position does not allow him to fall in love.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable, though a bit biased, romantic & political comedy
Review: This is a very enjoyable comedy. As a reviewer, I do have to let you know that there is noticeable political bias here. I don't criticize it; just be aware of it. As romantic comedy, it works quite well, and the political setting elevates it so that one who usually doesn't like romantic comedy should give it a chance. Somebody compared this with DAVE, and this will appeal to those who liked DAVE. The cast definitely carries the picture. I'm not a Michael Douglas fan, but he's quite effective here, as is Annette Bening. As far as believability is concerned, sure, the movie misses here and there, but do we go to see a movie to see things exactly the way they are? I doubt that myself. This is a movie to enjoy, as long as you don't let the political bias bother you.
Rating:
Summary: Stupid predictable politics, inept protocol make a fun movie
Review: When widower President Andy Shephard meets feisty environmental lobbyist Sydney Wade the obvious happens -- they fall in love. What makes this movie a charmer is attention to detail: Sydney's encounter with the guard when she first goes to the White House, her sister's comment when she rejects the advances of the President ("He's handsome, intelligent, charming, funny and he's the leader of the Western World. Aren't our standards a little high?"), the riotous (and painfully realistic) futile attempts Shepard makes to personally send flowers to Sidney. There's a ring of honesty to the story that's rare in Hollywood movies today. Presumably Reiner and staff had plenty of opportunity to view the Clinton White House in action. It's too bad they didn't pay more attention to protocol. There is no way the President could/would have danced first with Sydney Wade at the dinner for the French Ambassador. Protocol demands that the President dance with the Ambassador's wife for the first dance...THEN he might have been free to choose Sydney. There were a couple of mistakes involving protocol that shouldn't have appeared but in all the movie is romantic, witty and vastly entertaining. Sunnye Tiedemann (aka Ruth F. Tiedemann)
Rating:
Summary: The blueprint for "The West Wing"
Review: Almost everything that makes "The American President" compulsively watchable is due to the screenwriter, Aaron Sorkin, who literally used this movie as the blueprint for "The West Wing", his first-rate television series. Rob Reiner slows down Sorkin's staccato pace enough for the saccharine Douglas-Bening love story to sound like a thinking man's Meg Ryan movie: sometimes you feel the actors are moving underwater in the White House corridors. They do fine, but it's really the proto-"West Wing" aspect that's the most fun. Especially amusing are discovering the characters who will reappear, with barely a change, in TWW. Spot Michael J. Fox in the "Josh Lyman" part, David Paymer in the "Toby Ziegler" part, and Martin Sheen trying out his paces in the "Leo McGarry" chief of staff part. Michael Douglas is okay, but I was really hankering to see Sheen behind the desk in the Oval Office, and Bening, who's excellent, has both C.J.'s and Donna's lines.
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