Scanialara You won't be disappointed!

XoWizIama Excellent adaptation.

Baseshment I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Plustown A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

sashank_kini-1 When we were kids, we played a popular game called 'Simon says'. In this game, one kid from the group became 'Simon' and issued instructions to the rest of the group, like 'Simon says sit' or 'Simon says jump'. The person who failed to perform the action immediately lost the game and sat out until the winner was declared. The six contestants who compete in a reality show that offers the winner a chance of the lifetime to shake hands with President George Bush (now former President, of course) are so hare-brained and crotchety they'd all fail in first round of a Simon Says game, forget making the list of NDTV's top entrepreneurs (as the film states. The only way this can be justifiable is if NDTV is equally harebrained) or worse, representing India to greet a President. It isn't just the contestant choice that's ridiculous but the selection committee itself which includes two unhinged women who conduct a series of absurd tasks in elimination rounds. It's really a stretch to believe that the US consulate would these circus freaks to work for them, who seem fitter as inmates of a mental asylum. The only reality shows that fits the bill for these cartoons is the garish 'Timeout with Imam', the Indian 'reality show' (though it's obviously scripted) that's currently polluting MTV India. For those unfamiliar with the show, think Spencer Pratt & Heidi Montag.Actor-director Kunaal Roy Kapoor's satirical mockumentary is too incredulous to work as a satire or mockumentary, and edges on farce with non-stop tomfoolery. The characters in 'The President is Coming' are so in-your-face obnoxious and in-each-other's faces offensive that they put you off so much, you'd wish that carnivorous plant from Cadbury Bournville commercial would devour them up. These aren't likable caricatures, like Sheldon Cooper in Big Bang Theory or Meryl Streep's wonderful Camilla Bowner in 'Web Therapy', whose verbal darts during their repartees are sharp but don't hurt. In 'The President is Coming', the characters want to draw blood every time they open their mouths. At one point, a guy asks a girl 'Are you a sl*t?... A wh*re?' (later, it is found that the girl had recorded a sex-tape with another male contestant in the past) like he's asking about weather. Even the wicked Barney Stinson from comedy series How I Met Your Mother would've been more tactful.There are seven contenders fighting for the title of 'The Most offensive character' in the film. Let's begin with the host Samantha Patel, a bossy uptight always-Miss-Right anchor who dons Barkha Dutt's bob cut. There's hardly a moment where we don't see her putting down her timid protégé Ritu Johnson and telling her who has the last word. She's later found to be a kleptomaniac stealing cutlery and statues from the location of the reality show. It's surprising that this character, who wants to remain in the spotlight always, doesn't ask the reality-show's camera-man (who's off-screen, holding the camera, through which we view all the action) for close-ups, or come too close to the camera only to block others from view. The six contestants include Maya Roy, an author who loves the works of Ernest Hemingway, except she thinks she's better. A strong-minded forward-thinking divorcée, she is irked by the misogynistic, homophobic, antediluvian thinking of co-contestant Ajay Karlekar, a Hindutva social worker who believes he and George Bush share the same qualities (he's got that right, at least). She is also very shrewd, using contestants' weaknesses to get them eliminated. One victim is South Indian Ramesh S., a closeted homosexual who is learns all the rules of straight-flirtation but never gets them right. Then there is billionaire's daughter and budding entrepreneur Archana, a scatterbrained brown skin Paris Hilton without the puppies, and Rohit Seth, an accent trainer running the unimaginatively named 'Speak easy'; this is the couple that was involved in the sex tape scandal. The guy who asks her whether she's a sl*t is Kapil Dev Dholakia, a stockbroker who can speak stocks and shares very easily but nothing else. When asked what the capital of US is, he replies 'Dow Jones'. The film gives this painful guy a sweet revenge by dressing him up as Madonna in the Round 'American Masquerade'.You just can't choose some who calls Osama Bin Laden as Sri Sri Ravi Shankar as one of the top six contestants of any quiz based reality show, especially one where the winner meets Mr. Bush. One just can't be so ignorant, so offensive and so ludicrous unless paid handsomely by the TV to act this way. There's also some obvious blunders for which no explanations are provided. Firstly, where's the entire crew that's shooting the event? Are we to believe one that there's only person shooting AND operating the boom mic (a device to capture sound. Oftentimes makes special appearance in films due to careless editing) and there's no security except one mousy watchman? And why would one character reveal a maleficent hidden agenda in front of TV cams and security cams? All these annoyances and blunders rob the spotlight from moments of mild delight.Ernest Hemingway once said 'The most essential gift for a good writer is a built-in, shock-proof sh*t detector. This is the writer's radar and all great writers have had it'. Anuvab Pal may not even make it to the long list of such writers. His film reeks.

elshikh4 This is funny movie for sure. Firstly (The President Is Coming) reminded me of an earlier Egyptian movie named (Zeyaret el-Sayed el-Rais - 1994) or (Visit of Mr. President) ! Both movies got nearly the same main happening but with totally different plots and characters. However the 2 movies meet in many perspectives.Producing an Indian movie as a mockumentary that makes fun of the American president, policy so the American dream's mania, yet in English is an unmistakable message, that shows internationally a different Indian cinema and certain viewpoints as well. Its smartest point was dealing with the whole characters as no body is perfect. That left no room for any partiality, giving a plenty of space to mock but in objective style where all is questionable hence ready to be mocked at.It has many interesting points, on the top of them is the main idea. It's all about who will shake the American president's hand in his first visit to India ?!!! So the competition to select the Indian young man or women that will have the honor of shaking the no great shakes !At some parts I felt how it's a witty parody of reality TV shows, especially The Apprentice and Survivor, where the backstabbing and the shadow conspiracies are on. But you'd feel that the movie relayed on the dialog a bit much than the action, despite how lively the events were. Moreover, maybe against the movie makers' will, the constancy of the place or set gave it a little sense of boredom while I'm positive that the budget wasn't there to hold things out.Another problem, the logic of the movie as basically a documentary was broken. Simply scenes like the one of offering the bribe could be understandable while the deceitful competitors, a la Survivor, know by heart that there is a camera shooting them nonstop. But with other scenes it didn't make any sense at all. For instance, the moment when the arrogant manager steals things from the embassy wasn't believable since she naturally knows that she's on camera !!?? Plus the scene of exposing the plan of the assassination !! How the winner girl dared to declare all of that in front of the running camera ?? Actually when we see the whole room later from another angle we discover that there is no camera shooting at all ?! So, while the whole movie has been filmed by steadicam, the direction failed utterly to divide the moments that were in front of the "documentary's camera" from the ones which weren't (where the characters speak freely or deal frankly). That's a fault confused the viewer, which has been avoided in not too far experiences like (Drop Dead Gorgeous - 1999) in which the whole thing is from the running camera's point of view, where we don't watch the conspiracy or the conspirator, only the results.Minor points : at the end we saw the novelist living her life without any problems ? How is that while she was about to kill the American president and more than one person already knew about it ? Maybe the things were kept secret yet the movie didn't allow us to catch on that appropriately (even by swift hint at the end's boards). Or how they're doing exams, selecting the shaker just one night before the handshake ?! On the other hand, the performance was perfect. This cast made the best indeed. They are all brilliant, having both the charisma and the talent. I've been fascinated in particular by (Konkona Sen Sharma) who played the role of the novelist. And the fact that none of them delivered an overdone acting is something assures partly the quality of this director.Speaking of which, (Kunaal Roy Kapur) made a fine job. I liked the try to create a graceful pace with the camera moves and the clever editing. The very good animated commenting helped that and assured the movie's jovial personality. Suffice it to say that there were some cadres which were singly funny; character says an opinion to the camera while less important opinion is being said in the same cadre yet its sayer is down half-apparent, and so on.There is a nice satiric spirit all over it. This script managed to discharge its writer's anger well. The lines, the gags, even the soundtrack's songs all are intense and bitterly derisive. It's just the sexual tone that was somehow superfluous but not that copious anyway. I liked some obvious remarks yet lovely : the march of "shake the American president's hand, and you'll go to promise land", line like "inside every thief there is a good man" and where it was said !, or the Indian way of dealing with things "by the American way" which isn't "democracy" it's "reality TV" !! Let alone the wicked using of "he got the whole world in his hand" while seeing George W. Bush for the first time ! And last but not the least the quote of Gordon Gekko from Oliver Stone's Wall Street "Greed is good" as the best line will be said while shaking the American president.. Excellent !I loved the dramatic change, or rather disclosure, of the inordinately Americanized guy. The moment of him finally expressing his long curbed emotions towards America during his facing with Bush's statue was outstanding and the highest moment of this movie despite that I didn't admire its monologue.It's simple, clear, and compared to the general production of the Indian cinema lately—refreshing and most of all : original ! I hope my voice reaches this movie's makers while saying: Keep on the good work, WE NEED MORE!

bretthicksmaitland I saw this film in New York City for the South Asian Festival. How wonderful to see the first of it's kind and an Indian mockumentary. The film was good fun - the audience loved it and laughed the whole way through. The actors were all very strong - and the script was fast paced and very theatrical. Always a pleasure to watch Konkona Sen Sharma strutting her stuff. Anand Tiwari is absolutely hysterical - he's one to watch out for.The cast work very well together as a whole - and the animated sequences are a real treat - that make you think that you are watching some sort of reality TV show - that people get voted out of. I think this film will do very well in India and abroad!!!!

james-2769 I saw President at its NYC opening at SAIFF. I found it both pleasantly entertaining and original. As a non-Indian I may have missed some of the specific Indian humor contained in a few scenes but all in all I found myself laughing pretty consistently throughout the film. If you're looking for a film with great characters, witty dialogue, and a slick editing I highly recommend it. The other thing that stood out to me was the caliber of acting and the great on screen chemistry between the characters. At its core the film pokes fun at both India and the U.S. and the strange relationship that exists between these two great countries.