Head of State

2003 "The only thing white is the house."
5.5| 1h35m| PG-13| en| More Info
Released: 28 March 2003 Released
Producted By: DreamWorks Pictures
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Info

When a presidential candidate dies unexpectedly in the middle of the campaign, the Democratic party unexpectedly picks a Washington, D.C. alderman as his replacement.

Genre

Drama, Comedy

Watch Online

Head of State (2003) is now streaming with subscription on Prime Video

Director

Chris Rock

Production Companies

DreamWorks Pictures

AD
AD

Watch Free for 30 Days

Stream on any device, 30-day free trial
Watch Now
Head of State Videos and Images
View All
  • Top Credited Cast
  • |
  • Crew

Head of State Audience Reviews

Alicia I love this movie so much
Listonixio Fresh and Exciting
Beanbioca As Good As It Gets
Matho The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.
Prismark10 A film that feels remarkably aged and redundant after the 2008 US Presidential elections with the election of Barack Obama.Mays Gilliam (Chris Rock) is a conscientious and hard working Alderman in Washington DC. After saving a woman and her cat from a building that is about to explode. Mays is plucked from obscurity to be the replacement presidential candidate when the previous dies in a plane crash.Of course he has been selected so he can put up a plucky fight and lose, so their can be a serious candidate four years later. His rival is the hot favourite to win the election. He is the current vice president, a war hero and a cousin to Sharon Stone.The film is mildly amusing, silly but falls way off base as a political satire. The script feels half finished and half baked. At times you feel that you are watching a series of sketches than a movie.
Claudio Carvalho One candidate for the presidency dies in an accident a couple of weeks before the election. Meanwhile the alderman Mays Gilliam (Chris Rock) becomes a hero when he rescues a woman and her cat from an old house that would blow up. However his fiancée Kim (Robin Givens) does not pay his bills and dumps him, and Gilliam loses everything including his fancy car. When Senator Bill Arnot (James Rebhorn) sees the news on television, he plots a scheme with the party advisors Martin Geller (Dylan Baker) and Debra Lassiter (Lynn Whitfield) to invite Mays to be the party nominee and lose the election for the other candidate, Vice- President Brian Lewis (Nick Searcy). Four years later, he would be the candidate and would have the chance of winning the election. Mays has a terrible beginning of campaign but when his older brother Mitch Gilliam (Bernie Mac) meets him in Chicago, he advises Mays to be himself. Will he have the chance to be the first African American President of the USA?"Head of State" is a silly film that every now and then makes laugh. The uneven plot has memorable scenes, like the party with the guests dancing or when Mays tells that God should protect the whole world; but there are stupid scene, most of them with Mitch Gilliam in interviews. But in general, this film is satisfactory and entertains. My vote is six.Title (Brazil): "Um Pobretão na Casa Branca" ("A Pauper in the White House")
kkss1 Why is it that in the quotes list, no one has listed Mays' first big speech? YOu know, the one where he turns off the TelePrompter (somewhat expected, from a rebel candidate), and sets off into a Chris Rock standup routine that turns the whole campaign around? It's one of the funniest pieces of standup I've ever seen--even funnier than when he compared the war to 'coming $87 million short on your register at the Gap, and then leading them in a war against Banana Republic because they have 'toxic tank tops,' only to find out when the workforce at the Gap has been reduced by half that Banana Republic doesn't sell tank tops.' (See the 2005 Oscars.) Bernie Mac fits wonderfully as the older brother turned running mate, and the rest of the movie fits wonderfully. Especially when Mays takes the love interest on a tour of DC (while making fun of anybody and everybody who has a building--Abe Lincoln ('okay, I'll free the slaves, but first you've got to build me a huge statue' (paraphrased)) to Oprah ('There's the Treasury. If you look closely, you'll see Oprah inside counting all her money).
sillylizard Intelligent. Chris Rock has balls and he mixes old-school comedy (think SNL in the 80s) and current American politics. ie. both the republican and democrats are corrupt and greedy, with no one but themselves at interest when it comes to "The United States of America." But, as Mr. Rock points out in the commentary, this film is a comedy, and not intended to be a political commentary.So why then did so few people think it was funny? Perhaps b/c they can't see the humour in their own country...how hysterical that the most God-blessed, powerful, and wealthy country in the world can be falling apart so badly. And that the government in election years must pretend to care about its citizens, when obviously they only care about the people who are handing them cheques.Delightfully irreverent, Chris Rock steps up to the plate.