Watching this movie again after many years, I had a familiar quote ringing in my ears: "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't after you." Joseph Heller penned that in his 1961 novel, "Catch- 22." I wonder if the makers of "The President's Analyst" hadn't read Heller's book, especially in the development of James Coburn's character, Dr. Sidney Schaefer.
I agree that the cast are generally good in their roles. Coburn is good, but he doesn't quite seem to nail his character. Others like his grinning smile at times, but that seemed strange to me when at other times he was frightened. Godrey Cambridge and Severn Darden give the best performances of the film.
The film story was a great idea – especially with the surprise ending. But I think the script didn't develop the story well. The first half of the film drags on, and the direction and film editing seem choppy. It shouldn't take an audience so long to get into the satire. And then, there aren't many scenes that bring out laughter.
Other reviewers have noted the numerous conventions of the 1960s that this film pokes fun at. Sometimes many lampoons don't work as well as fewer but better developed ones. That may be the case with this film. I would like to have given this movie a higher rating, but it's just not up to the mettle of the great comedy satires. "Dr. Strangelove," "Ninotchka," "To Be or Not to Be," "The Great Dictator," "The Mouse that Roared," and others have wonderful plots with great mixes of witty dialog, spoofing scenes and general satire.
One trait that the great films in this sub-genre have is a mix of roles. Some characters have genuinely serious roles, while others have cynical, and others outright comical roles. Coburn's character is the only one that has a semblance of seriousness at times. All the rest – the heads of the fantasized spy agencies, the "hit" men, the people in the groups being lampooned – are funny or silly. It seemed like a spy spoof that the Marx Brothers might make. Or, like the TV sitcom airing at the time, "Get Smart," in which most of characters were buffoons of one type or another. So, the satire doesn't work well. One other thing someone else observed seemed quite bad – the musical score in places.
One line by Kropotkin (Severn Darden) seems quite poignant. Remembering that the film was made in 1967, his comments seem close to being fulfilled today. In a discussion with Dr. Sidney Schaefer (Coburn), Kropotkin says, "Logic is on our side. This isn't a case of a world struggle between two divergent ideologies of different economic systems. Every day your country becomes more socialistic, my country becomes more capitalistic. Pretty soon we'll meet in the middle and join hands."
With a solid rewrite of the script, this film could have been a much better comedy satire for the time.
I agree that the cast are generally good in their roles. Coburn is good, but he doesn't quite seem to nail his character. Others like his grinning smile at times, but that seemed strange to me when at other times he was frightened. Godrey Cambridge and Severn Darden give the best performances of the film.
The film story was a great idea – especially with the surprise ending. But I think the script didn't develop the story well. The first half of the film drags on, and the direction and film editing seem choppy. It shouldn't take an audience so long to get into the satire. And then, there aren't many scenes that bring out laughter.
Other reviewers have noted the numerous conventions of the 1960s that this film pokes fun at. Sometimes many lampoons don't work as well as fewer but better developed ones. That may be the case with this film. I would like to have given this movie a higher rating, but it's just not up to the mettle of the great comedy satires. "Dr. Strangelove," "Ninotchka," "To Be or Not to Be," "The Great Dictator," "The Mouse that Roared," and others have wonderful plots with great mixes of witty dialog, spoofing scenes and general satire.
One trait that the great films in this sub-genre have is a mix of roles. Some characters have genuinely serious roles, while others have cynical, and others outright comical roles. Coburn's character is the only one that has a semblance of seriousness at times. All the rest – the heads of the fantasized spy agencies, the "hit" men, the people in the groups being lampooned – are funny or silly. It seemed like a spy spoof that the Marx Brothers might make. Or, like the TV sitcom airing at the time, "Get Smart," in which most of characters were buffoons of one type or another. So, the satire doesn't work well. One other thing someone else observed seemed quite bad – the musical score in places.
One line by Kropotkin (Severn Darden) seems quite poignant. Remembering that the film was made in 1967, his comments seem close to being fulfilled today. In a discussion with Dr. Sidney Schaefer (Coburn), Kropotkin says, "Logic is on our side. This isn't a case of a world struggle between two divergent ideologies of different economic systems. Every day your country becomes more socialistic, my country becomes more capitalistic. Pretty soon we'll meet in the middle and join hands."
With a solid rewrite of the script, this film could have been a much better comedy satire for the time.