I'm Oliver Stone and I Approve this Message.

As of today one week remains before Oliver Stone's self-described "Shakespearean" biopic of the current Commander-in-Chief W., invades silver screens across the country. Josh Brolin--who is already practiced in the art of acting presidential and a Texan by birth--takes on the role of the leader of the free world and its most infamous brush-clearer as he journeys from wayward, troubled first born son to Oval Office inhabitant.

According to Stone, the movie is a serious re-telling of the events of Bush's life, spanning from the early years of drunken fights with his father in Texas until the days leading up to the Iraq war. In other words, think more Biography Channel and less extended SNL skit, as he told the London Times last week.

"It's a comedy only in the sense of tragic comedy," he winces. "You laugh in your mind, because Bush is a goof-ball, because he's awkward, but at the same time he has a stubborn-ness, a John Wayne ethos, an anger, an impatience, that make him fascinating. You may hate Wayne's politics, but you may well enjoy his company on screen."

Even though Stone swears no actual malice went into the making of the movie, you can imagine that Republicans might be less than thrilled about the October release of a film that that harshly depicts their party's leadership over the last eight years. In fact, Stone pushed the release date of the movie up so that it would be in theaters for the last weeks of the election. And in an interview with Entertainment Weekly back in May his producers said they hoped to run TV spots for the film opposite McCain ads in the Fall. Targeting McCain ads specifically appears to be a partisan move against the party of Stone's former Yale classmate.

Still you can't help but wonder if it's easier for Obama to land the "four more years" blow against McCain with voters who just spent two hours in the dark with George Bush.

If you haven't seen the trailer take a look and weigh in on Stone's sometimes inspired casting choices:

--Kyle Gassiott

6:27 PM ET | 10-10-2008 | permalink

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