Hollywood’s F-U

By EUGENE MULERO, Correspondent

I don’t know why I keep forgetting what a liberal bastion Hollywood is. But I do.

Next week, one of the big studios is releasing, “W,” a biopic on none other than Good Ol’ President Bush. And the only director desperate (and stupid) enough to take on the project: Oliver Stone.

So let’s see – the same director who cemented the JFK conspiracy, depicted Wall Street as a two-dimensional good-versus-evil jungle and offered us the last passion of Tricky Dick.

The only thing that comes to mind is, WHY?

Why do we need this movie that now we all have to go see? Why? Doesn’t Hollywood learn anything from the past?

The average voter hates Hollywood’s elite – the 1 percent richest son-of-a-guns live and work around there. Remember what happened after “Fahrenheit 9/11”?—well, I do. Bush got re-elected. Yes. After that Oscar-winning “masterpiece” dismantling the empire, W still won.

So, from what I’ve read and the previews I’ve seen, “W” exposes the Bush Administration’s tumultuous disagreements about Iraq, reveals Karl Rove’s genius and chronicles Bush’s journey from college fuck-up to president. TELL ME SOMETHING I DON’T KNOW!

What “W” is going to do is reinforce the notion to middle America that Hollywood is full of Bentley-driving assholes, while preaching to the choir of W haters.

And as far as Oliver Stone – the guy can make a good film, don’t get me wrong – I enjoyed “U-Turn” – but, really, the “W” project is such an obvious fuck-you to President Bush that it’s a pathetic undertaking.

What would’ve been daring on the part of Stone and Hollywood, would’ve been to greenlight an investigative documentary on Hollywood Studios’ stranglehold on American culture and ties to defense contractors (but, that won’t happen, since movies about war are profitable).

Eugene Mulero may be reached at Eugene.Mulero@gmail.com.

Obama and McCain Will Always Have Paris

BY CASEY HYNES, CORRESPONDENT

With recent numbers indicating that the presidential race is tightening in national polls, it seems John McCain’s campaign is gaining momentum toward the end of a turbulent summer. In recent weeks, ads lobbing attacks at Barack Obama have been fast and frequent, perhaps the most notorious of which was the “celebrity” ad that cast Obama as a popular public figure who is unprepared for the presidency, comparable to pop star Britney Spears or hotel heiress Paris Hilton.

Much has been made of the ad, including the assumption by some news organizations that it suggests that Obama is superficial, certainly not to be taken seriously as someone who is ready to lead the country. Whether or not this image will play with voters in November remains to be seen, but perhaps more importantly, the ad reflects an unfortunate tendency toward the trivial in this campaign and reinforces the notion that both of these men are out of touch with the people they seek to lead.

Despite the rather serious issues facing the country in this election, including an unpopular war, a struggling economy, an increasingly unstable situation in Afghanistan and rising health-care costs, the media has given extensive coverage to campaign issues that seem unlikely to affect whether or not a candidate is prepared for the job.

Stories have abounded about Obama’s workout schedule and whether or not he is too thin to be commander-in-chief. Given the gravity of this election, it seems almost laughable that stories like this would be given much play, considering that there is likely much to learn about someone who is relatively young and promises to bring a fresh approach to the political scene. But these stories do receive attention, much to the chagrin of the McCain campaign, which has shot back by dubbing Obama “The One,” and criticizing the media for a love affair with the younger senator.

Instead of taking a sharp and effective aim at Obama in the “celebrity” ad, where they have control of the content and can get their message across, the McCain camp ultimately led the eyes of the nation back to Spears and Hilton, as if the two have not received enough undue attention as it is.

The ad, for those who have not seen it, paints Obama as “the biggest celebrity in the world,” a declaration highlighted by throngs of people chanting the Democratic candidate’s name. The narrator questions whether Obama is ready to lead, and criticizes his stance against offshore drilling to address the nation’s energy crisis. A USA Today/Gallup poll indicates that Americans favor offshore drilling by a 2-to-1 margin after seeing gas soar to more than $4 a gallon this summer. Both candidates had said they opposed increasing offshore drilling in the past, but remained open to the possibility as costs rose.

While the McCain camp was right to target their opponent on a pressing issue that has dominated the news throughout the summer, the message seems weakened by the use of Spears and Hilton in the ad. It may have been that they were trying to play up the image of Obama as overhyped, big on talk but very short on action. It’s a theme they might do well to run with, since there are many lingering questions about the senator. His former political rival Alan Keyes has compared him to the wizard in the “The Wizard of Oz.”

During an appearance on “Fox & Friends Sunday,” Keyes described Obama as having been “hyped by the Democrats as something he’s not.” That was in 2004, but it’s a notion that continues to ring true for Obama critics in 2008.

McCain campaign spokesman Rick Davis may have alluded to this point in regards to the “celebrity” ad. He told CBS that “the focus on events and activities is much more something you would expect from someone releasing a new movie than running for president.” Neither campaign was available for comment for this article.

While this theme does warrant attention in what looks to be a tight race for the White House, the campaign would have been wise to drop Spears and Hilton from the ad and focus on Obama’s weaknesses. The use of the two celebrities was no doubt going to draw attention, but the forthcoming focus that has been placed on that aspect of the ad takes away from the seriousness of other possible implications.

There has been talk of McCain being the first of the candidates to go negative, despite both men having pledged to run campaigns free of the negativity and the sense of “politics as usual” that people are tired of seeing. Still, it seems almost inevitable that harsh attacks will be thrown from either side as the country heads into the final stages of the election. That McCain should be seen as the first to go negative, however, will not play well for him with voters who claim to be fed up with the old ways of Washington.

The question of whether or not Barack Obama is ready to lead the country is a worthy one. Whoever takes office in January faces tough tasks that will take more than eloquent promises and grand rhetoric to solve. Obama has been big on talk of hope and change. Based on recent polls that have the two within a few percentage points of one another, however, he has not effectively argued that he is up to meeting those challenges. But if the media is sympathetic to Obama, McCain has to get his message across in a smart and effective way that maximizes his time on the air, right?

The “celebrity” ad in some ways seems to have been a gamble. To an extent, it may have resonated with voters; the idea of Obama being on the level of Hollywood stars who look good but haven’t shown that they have much else to offer may raise concern for those who are looking for real answers rather than hype. However, the focus on Spears and Hilton, and the negativity of the message, also allowed Obama to dismiss it by saying he doesn’t pay attention to John McCain’s ads.

Not surprisingly, Hilton took advantage of the publicity after the ad was released and shot her own video spot in response. After calling McCain wrinkly and white-haired, and assuring the country that she wasn’t promising change “like that other guy,” Hilton unveiled her “all of the above” energy plan in the spoof. The heiress suggested limited offshore drilling with strict environmental oversight, and tax incentives for automobile manufacturers to create hybrid and plug-in cars. CNN reported that Republicans used Hilton’s tongue-in-cheek ad for publicity and to push for a plan that would call for offshore drilling. Even though it’s difficult to take anything from the Hilton spoof seriously, her compromised approach may actually be what’s needed to solve a serious issue, the solution to which currently seems bogged down in partisan politics.

It has been widely reported that moderate and independent voters will decide this election. If Paris Hilton represents a more balanced response than either of the presidential candidates, perhaps both of them should reconsider their energy platforms. Although a gallon of gas has dipped in some areas below $4 again, Americans are still paying considerably more than they were four years ago. The energy issue is not going away and both need to demonstrate that they can address the problem effectively, which may mean leaving open possibilities their parties have claimed to be against.

Reaching that middle ground among voters has become a sensitive area for both Democrats and Republicans. Both campaigns have tried to paint the other as elitists and out of touch with the problems faced by average Americans.

The debate was heightened last week as McCain stumbled when a Politico reporter asked how many houses he owns. In June, Karl Rove suggested Obama was an elitist, and described him as “coolly arrogant,” according to ABC News. Last week, the Obama campaign got to return the favor, casting McCain as a millionaire steeped in Washington traditions and unable to appreciate the plight of the middle class.

Americans are looking for a president who is ready to dig in and take action on issues like gas prices and energy independence. Both candidates must be able to demonstrate that despite their personal wealth and success, they can relate and are ready to wrestle with the nation’s biggest concerns.

To hear the rival campaigns tell it, Americans can choose between an aloof and out-of-touch millionaire or a vacuous celebrity. Well, at least we have Paris Hilton to fall back on.

Casey Hynes may be reached at casey.hynes@gmail.com.