I have to start this comment by saying that I am a very liberal Minnesotan. I cried when Paul Wellstone died and I teared up when Bush won a second term. That being said, I really liked this film. For a movie about a hard-core liberal, it is amazingly balanced. With clips of Al from his SNL days and jokes made during fund-raising speeches, it was as funny as it was political. It follows Franken during the formation of his radio show on Air American through the '04 election. The only unfortunate part is that the politics seem to play better in downtown Minneapolis than they would in, say, Dallas. Minnesota is a Democratic stronghold and has been for years. Part of the film focuses on Franken's friendship with Paul Wellstone and his dislike of the man who took his Senate seat, Norm Coleman. People from other states may not know these names or how deeply the impact the people of this state. While one (Coleman) used to campaign for the other(Wellstone), they ended up being on opposite ends of the political spectrum by the time that they became competitors. It is insights like this that make some jokes funny and some comments astute. This film does not try to sway the audience, it simply presents the political world from Al's point of view. The passion he displays during his speeches and radio shows is amazing. He is one of the few people that obviously believe in what he is saying with every fiber of his being. Even if you don't believe in what he is saying, you have to respect the force and vigor with which he says it.
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