Head of State (film)

Infobox Film
name = Head of State


caption =
director = Chris Rock
writer = Chris Rock
Ali LeRoi
starring = Chris Rock
Bernie Mac
Tracy Morgan
producer = Michael Rotenberg
distributor = DreamWorks
U.S. Gross = $37,778,288
released = 28 March 2003 (USA)
runtime = 95 min.
language = English
imdb_id = 0325537

"Head of State" is a 2003 American movie directed by, written by, and starring Chris Rock and Bernie Mac.

Plot

Mays Gilliam (Chris Rock) is an alderman of the 9th Ward in the Washington D.C. area. After being fired from his post and dumped by his girlfriend, Kim (Robin Givens), Mays is surprisingly chosen as the party candidate for the presidency (after his party's original presidential and vice-presidential nominees die in a plane crash; their two separate planes crashed into each other) to run against sitting vice-president Brian Lewis. Assuming the election was already lost, the party decided to pick a likeable but losing minority candidate to improve their chances of another politician taking the office in the next presidential election. At first, Mays 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 mess it up. However, Mays begins to rise in the polls after his brother (Bernie Mac) persuades him to speak out for what he believes. He begins to talk about issues such as welfare, money, society, etc. After Lewis runs a series of attack ads including one saying Mays supports Cancer, Mays begins to fight back using what he claimed was "kissing" his opponent (Taking from Bugs Bunny-Elmer Fudd cartoons). In this strategy, Mays hires various individuals such as a KKK member to endorse his opponent, or dubs a videotape of Osama bin Ladin saying he hates America but likes Brian Lewis. This strategy allows Mays to gain more points in the election. As the voting day draws closer, Mays eventually finds out the reason why he was chosen as the party candidate, and fires some disloyal campaign operatives. He debates his opponent in which he manages to win the crowd over by speaking truth of the American life. Mays ends up winning the election and the presidency.

Inspiration

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. The Democrats knew they had little chance of defeating Ronald Reagan, but Ferraro's nomination allowed them to gain female voters, contributing to the eventual 1992 election of Bill Clinton.Fact|date=August 2008

Cast

*Chris Rock – Mays Gilliam
*Bernie Mac – Mitch Gilliam
*Dylan Baker – Martin Geller
*Nick Searcy – Vice President Brian Lewis
*Lynn Whitfield – Debra Lassiter
*Robin Givens – Kim
*Tamala Jones – Lisa Clark
*James Rebhorn – Senator Bill Arnot
*Keith David – Bernard Cooper
*Stephanie March – Nikki
*Nate Dogg – Himself
*DJ Quik – Musical Score

Trivia/Goofs

*Majority of outside scenes filmed in Sykesville, Maryland and other locales throughout Carroll County, Maryland.
*Part of the presidential debate is a verbatim repeat of Monty Python's Argument Sketch.
*The city of Washington, DC doesn't have aldermen; it does have councilmen, however. Moreover, it does not have a ninth ward, it only has eight, though this may be in attempt to avoid making Rock's character unnecessarily particular (or an attempt not to offend anyone who lives in one of the eight wards), in the same manner that his political party is never mentioned. It could be possible Mays campaigned as an independent, although the party that worked behind the scenes seemed too monolithic.
*Gilliam's car cannot be towed with its rear wheels on the ground (since there isn't any way to release the handbrake). The car would have needed to be towed on a platform tow truck.
*In the scene where Mays makes an appearance for TNA Wrestling (a legitimate promotion), B.G. James is holding the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, a title he has never held. (although Jeff Jarrett, who has held the title 6 times, is later shown in the same scene holding the belt)
*Keith David had a small role as Bernard Cooper who is shown to have purchased Mays' car in a repo auction.
*in the scene where Mays walks through the rain after he sees his ex with another man, the rain machine is clearly visible as a reflection in the windows (it looks like a few fans spraying water, (also, they are shadows) above the set).

External links

*imdb title|id=0325537|title=Head of State