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Just Then It Felt As If I Wasn’t Pretending Anymore

Posted in General Comments, Movie Review, Movies, Reviews, tagged 25th Amendment, Alan Reed, Ben Kingsley, Bill Mitchell, Bob Alexander, Charles Grodin, Chief of Staff, Dave (1993) — movie review, Dave Kovic, Ellen Mitchell, First Lady, Frank Langella, General Comments, Hollywood, Ivan Reitman, Kevin Dunn, Kevin Kline, Movie Reviews, Murray Blum, Oval Office, Reviews, Sigourney Weaver, Strong Movie Recommendation, The White House, Vice‑President Nance, Ving Rhames on June 9, 2026| 3 Comments »

“Dave” (1993) — movie review
Today’s second film review is for the political comedy “Dave”, directed by Ivan Reitman and starring Kevin Kline as Dave Kovic / Bill Mitchell, the decent temp‑agency owner who ends up impersonating the President; Sigourney Weaver as Ellen Mitchell, the sharp and quietly frustrated First Lady; Frank Langella as Bob Alexander, the power‑hungry Chief of Staff; Kevin Dunn as Alan Reed, the nervous Communications Director trying to keep the whole mess together; Ving Rhames as Duane Stevenson, the stone‑faced Secret Service agent who slowly warms to Dave; Ben Kingsley as Vice‑President Nance, honest and steady; and Charles Grodin as Murray Blum, Dave’s accountant friend who somehow ends up fixing the federal budget with a pencil. Light political comedy with a good heart.

Background: This is a re‑watch for me. I saw “Dave” back when it first came out and mostly remembered it as “the nice political comedy where Kevin Kline plays two parts and somehow makes both work.” The movie did reasonably well and picked up an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay. It sits in that early‑90s window when Hollywood could still make a White House comedy that was hopeful instead of bitter. No dark conspiracy thriller, no “everything is broken” sermon — just the idea that maybe a decent person could land in the Oval Office and try to help. Looking at it now, that alone makes it feel more than a little historic.

Plot: Dave Kovic runs a small temp agency in “small town, America”, and does a side gig impersonating the President because he happens to look exactly like him. One night, the Secret Service hires him to be a stand‑in for a quick public appearance. While Dave is “being” the President, the real Bill Mitchell has a stroke during an affair. Bob Alexander and Alan Reed decide to keep the medical crisis secret and use Dave as a full‑time double so they can keep the government (and their own power) under control. At first, Dave just reads what they put in front of him. Then he starts paying attention. He visits a shelter, listens to people, and decides he actually wants to do some good. He brings in his friend Murray to help fix the budget, starts pushing for jobs, and treats staff like human beings. Ellen slowly figures out that this “new” husband is not the man she married, and that’s a good thing. Bob, meanwhile, tries to frame Dave in a fake scandal and set himself up as the next President. It all builds to a joint session of Congress, a staged collapse, and a quiet little ending that lets Dave walk away with his conscience intact.

So, is this movie any good? How’s the acting? The filming / FX? Any problems? And, did I enjoy the film? Short answers: Yes; very good; clean and straightforward; a few; yes.

Any good? Yes. “Dave” is simple, but it works. The story is easy to follow, the tone stays light without turning into pure fluff, and the movie never laughs at Dave for being decent. That’s important. A lot of later political stuff treats kindness as a joke or a weakness. Here, the whole point is that basic decency is exactly what’s missing. The script keeps things moving, gives everyone at least a moment or two, and lands the ending without a big speech about “saving democracy.” It’s not deep, but it’s solid.

Acting: Kevin Kline is the anchor for the whole film. As Dave, he’s awkward, funny, and genuinely kind; as Bill Mitchell, he’s cold and selfish. You never confuse the two, even though it’s the same face. Sigourney Weaver gives Ellen some real weight. She starts off distant and angry, then slowly lets herself trust this “new” version of her husband. Frank Langella leans into Bob Alexander as a classic Washington shark, and it fits the movie’s slightly heightened tone. Kevin Dunn’s Alan Reed is nervous, guilty, and more human than he first appears. Ving Rhames gets some of the best small moments as Duane, especially when he finally admits he’d take a bullet for Dave. Ben Kingsley plays Vice‑President Nance as quiet and honest, which pays off later. And Charles Grodin, as Murray, walks in, talks about cutting the federal budget like it’s a household ledger, and just about steals the movie. I can’t remember liking Grodin in anything I’ve ever seen him in, but in this film he really is excellent! Go figure…

Filming / FX: This is early‑90s studio work, and it looks like it. Clean interiors, bright lighting, and a White House that feels like a movie set but not a cartoon. No flashy camera tricks, no big effects shots — just straightforward coverage that lets the actors and the script do the work. The music leans a little “uplifting,” but it matches the tone. Nothing here is going to wow you visually, but nothing gets in the way either. It feels like exactly what it is: a mid‑budget studio comedy that knows its job.

Problems: The big one is realism. The idea that you could hide a presidential stroke, swap in a double, and keep it going for weeks is pure fantasy. The movie doesn’t really care about the 25th Amendment or how any of this would actually work. Bob Alexander is also pretty broad — fun to watch, but not subtle. The romance between Dave and Ellen is sweet, but it moves fast and mostly lives in looks and small gestures. If you want a hard‑edged political story, this isn’t it. You have to accept that this is a fable about a good person dropped into a bad system, not a “how Washington really works” movie.

Did I enjoy the film? Yes. I smiled through most of it. Some of that is nostalgia, but a lot of it is just the cast doing their jobs well. The jokes still land, the emotional beats still work, and the movie’s basic belief — that it would be nice if someone in power actually cared — hasn’t aged out. I rolled my eyes at a few of the plot shortcuts, but I never felt talked down to. For a light political comedy from thirty years ago, that’s not bad.

Final Recommendation: Strong recommendation. “Dave” is a well‑acted, good‑natured political comedy with a memorable dual performance from Kevin Kline and a script that earned its Oscar nomination. It’s also a small time capsule from when Hollywood could still imagine a basically decent person in the Oval Office without irony. Not a MUST see, but if you like character‑driven comedies, political stories with a soft touch, or just want to watch decent people try to do the right thing, “Dave” is very much worth your time.

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Click here (9 June) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.