W.

My friend, Shelly, and I went to see W. last night. It was better than I expected. If a movie can make me feel empathy for George W. Bush, that means it was well-balanced. It portrayed Bush as a man who is not unintelligent, which is the way I typically view him, but as someone who coveted his father's approval and got in way over his head in his quest to achieve it. It was a good reminder to see his pain and frustration, his love for his wife, and his anger and anxiety when it was discovered that there were no WMDs in Iraq. It reminded me that he, like me, is only human. No one, except for Dick Cheney, was portrayed as especially evil or sinister. From the perspective of the movie, Cheney was the primary architect of the Iraq war with Donald Rumsfeld being an important sidekick. The most fascinating character was Condoleeza Rice, simply because she was such a non-significant voice. During the entire two-hour movie, she may have spoken 5 complete sentences. According to the movie's portrayal, she had no power or influence. The covert message seemed to clearly be that she has been a puppet National Security Advisor because of her sex and race. There were some humorous moments, and some of the most well-known Bushisms made an appearance, but it was clearly meant to be a drama. If you've been considering seeing it, I would say it's worth the time.