Barnes & Noble

An ambitious, audacious directorial debut for Tim Robbins, this deft and occasionally savage satire displays a healthy contempt for our political process and the media that covers it. Robbins casts himself as Bob Roberts, a wealthy, rabidly right-wing folk singer determined to unseat liberal, longtime Senator Brickley Paiste (acidly played by novelist Gore Vidal). The resulting campaign reaches ludicrous heights of hypocrisy, with both candidates vying for the attention of an anesthetized public that seems to value show-biz panache over ideological integrity. Half mockumentary and half polemic, Bob Roberts is simultaneously exhilarating and depressing: Robbins portrays our political system as irreversibly corrupt, a cruel charade that encourages unqualified boobs to seek political office based on the size of their wallets and their egos. But this 1992 film is intelligent, energetic, and vibrantly acted; and the passage of time seems to have confirmed many of Robbins's trenchant observations. The Artisan Entertainment special-edition DVD includes an audio commentary track and behind-the-scenes footage. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

In the tradition of This Is Spinal Tap, producer/ director/ star Tim Robbins' Bob Roberts is a satire disguised as a documentary. Robbins plays the titular Roberts, a wealthy, well-connected young man running for a senatorial seat in Pennsylvania. On the surface, Roberts is an ingratiating glad-hander, a sincere believer in the restoration of such intangibles as national pride, family values, etc. But the longer Roberts is followed about by documentary filmmaker Brian Murray, the more we become aware that the candidate is a textbook case of cynicism and contempt. Only Giancarlo Esposito, a reporter for an underground newspaper, is willing to dig beneath Roberts' veneer--a habit that leads to the film's ironic conclusion. Several well-known actors make cameo appearances as TV commentators, notably Tim Robbins' longtime partner Susan Sarandon. Bob Roberts started out as a Tim Robbins-directed short subject for the TV series Saturday Night Live, then was expanded into a $4 million feature. Hal Erickson

Product Details

• UPC: 012236114888
• Source: LIONS GATE
• Aspect Ratio: Pre-1954 Standard (1.33.1)
• Presentation: Pan & Scan
• Sound: Dolby Surround
• Language: English
• Subtitles: English
• Time: 1:42:00
• Sales Rank: 9,207

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