W.: The Case for George Bush

So, not the best movie. Not the worst. The guy who played Rove stunk. Same with the guy who did Powell. Everyone came off as not that bad of guys (even Cheney) and no conspiracies were brought up.

Which begs the question – is Oliver Stone a new man?

Possibly, but I think it all had more to do with showing Bush as a human being. Which makes me wonder why conservatives hated the movie.

Well, here's a scene.


W: Poppy, I have picked daisies for you. Would you care to eat some? (W hands his father a coconut)

Poppy: Son, they are…lovely. (Poppy accepts the coconut)

What stone is trying to show here is that W is forever trying to have his father acknowledge him as an equal…or maybe even a son.

Like this:

W: Poppy, you wanna play Punch Out?
Poppy: Not now, George. I have this State of the Union to write.
W: (looking forlorn) OK, that's cool. I'll just go driving around the yard again.
Poppy: On second thought. (Poppy raises an eyebrow, canned laughter plays)

What Stone has accomplished is the humanizing of a man that 62% of Americans want behind bars. No matter what your opinion of Bush is, you have to accept him as a human – that is our jobs as humans. Stone is trying to say, here you go, liberals, this is the guy you hate, now try to hate him.

And we can't. We see that G.W. is human like us. I know I've spent most of my entire life living off of whatever is the easiest piece of meat to chew. Who wouldn't take advantage of that. But there are consequences.

W: Poppy, Poppy, I made a fire in the sink! (W is scared)
Poppy: Where? Let me see. (Poppy follows W into the living room) Son, that's OK, that's not a sink. That's a fireplace.
W: Then I made two fires! (starts crying)

President Bush was a man of action. He prided himself in being the Decider. That's a heavy burden to pick up and go with. When was the last time you made a decision, a quick one, in order to save lives? You don’t always have the time to think about the moral certitude involved.

Laura Bush is also an important character in this movie as the loving wife, who begrudgingly supports her husband because she loves him.

Laura: Geo, you need to stop. Your boozing is ruining our marriage. You can't just keep drinking your way through life without serious repercussions. I don't want to be one of them. (crying)
W: Darling, when you married me you knew that I drank.
Laura: Not like this. Not at this time of the day. And not when your wife is crying – trying to save what's left of this marriage! (grabs W's arm and turns him toward her) I won't quit you, but you must quit it. (points to the bottle of Hawaiian Punch on the dresser)
W: The guy on the label looks happy.
Laura: He is happy. (stroking W's back) But you aren't.

W's substance abuse problems are well documented and it doesn't take a Dailykos subscriber to realize the man had some issues at an early age. Who hasn't had a drinking problem? Unless you're Mormon or Amish or deer, you've gone through a point in your life when you drank 8 or 39 beers a day. It's natural. But people grow. Take for instance my Mom, she had a cocaine problem a week ago, but was able to accept Buddha and become a 12 stepper.

W: Please, reverend, pray with me.
Reverend: (both bow heads) Dear father, help me grow tits so that I can be a woman again. I have sinned ever so in the Barking Lamb casino and I need to grow the wings that will deliver me into the inferno of your heart. Let me be you Skynrd and I will be your Lynrd.
W: You aren't my reverend.
Reverend: (raises eyebrows twice)

There's much uncertainty in W's life. From WMDs to Somalia pirates, a cast of characters emerges that frames the President as a man who must dodge in and out of life like a raccoon on a freeway. It becomes clear that it is hard to criticize a man on fire and W is a man who is like a raccoon on a freeway, only he's also on fire.

Pirate: Walk the plank! (points sword at plank)
W: Never. Not until you free my people.
Pirate: Your people are finished! Finished!
Laura: Actually, I'm still eating. So is Jeb.
W: You're wrecking it! (pan out to theme restaurant)

All in all, no one is going to agree on this movie. Some will say it's too hard on Bush (tee) and some are going to say that it wasn't hard enough (tee hee). But I think we can all agree that this movie comes in DVD form and has an FBI warning.

Thank you for taking the time to read my review.
Ronald