AMERICAN DREAMZ
Year: 2006
USA: Universal Pictures
UK: UIP (UK)
Cast: Hugh Grant, Dennis Quaid, Mandy Moore, Willem Dafoe, Chris Klein, Jennifer Coolidge, Sam Golzari, Marcia Gay Harden, Seth Meyers, John Cho, Judy Greer, Bernard White, Tony Yalda, Noureen DeWulf, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Jay Harik, Adam Busch, Haaz Sleiman, Nick Schutt, Lisa K Wyatt, Beau Holden, Tim Edward Rhoze, Marley Shelton, Lawrence Pressman, Aldis Hodge, Christianne Klein, Chao-Li Chi, Andrew Divoff, James Gleason, Michael D Roberts, Kevin R Kelly, Mike Batayeh, Sean-Michael Bowles, Riley Gibbs, Jordan Havard, Joshua Wade, Trey Parker, Niki J Crawford, Samantha "Jade" Gibbs, Amir Mahmoud, John Griffin, Danny Ehrhardt, Natascha Corrigan, Sarah Culberson, Perrey Reeves, Daniel Weiss, Karen Gordon, Carmen Electra, Kevin Makely, Richard Bartlett, Jerome Caldwell, Jeffrey Ross, Andean Banks, Jael Gadsden, Maree Morris, N'daba Divine, Adrian Zaw, Leopoldo Papi Mandeville, Bruce Garrick, P D Mani, Sathyanath Nambiar
Director: Paul Weitz
Country: USA
USA & UK: 107 mins
USA Rated: PG-13 for brief strong language and some sexual references
UK Certificate: 12A contains one use of strong language and moderate sex references
USA Release Date: 21 April 2006
UK Release Date: 21 April 2006
UK Distributor
Synopsis
"In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes." - Andy Warhol, Pop Culture Icon
In the world of right-now, it seems as if literally everybody wants to be famous. And thanks to the global phenomenon of "reality" television, literally anyone can be.
Take self-aggrandizing host of the runaway American hit TV show entitled "American Dreamz," Martin Tweed (Hugh Grant). Tweed's concept is a flashy reworking of the talent search formula: pit eager contestants against each other (talent sometimes notwithstanding) and televise their weekly battles to win judges' votes. In his all-out attempt to capture fickle television viewers and stay atop the network ratings' heap, Tweed has done anything and everything necessary to keep his show's popularity—and this season, he's just about to reach new heights.
Tired of the same boring guests season after season, Tweed decides to up this year's ante by recruiting a crop of bizarre hopefuls. The delicious new crop of aspiring "Dreamz" finalists includes Sally (Mandy Moore), a Southern belle who's sugar and spice in front of the cameras and not-so-nice in real-life, but is a conniving steel magnolia with a devoted, dopey veteran boyfriend (Chris Klein); the fame-obsessed mom/manager Martha (Jennifer Coolidge); Omer (Sam Golzari), a recent immigrant and bumbling, Broadway show tune-singing / would-be terrorist awaiting activation and Sholem (Adam Busch), an Orthodox cantor whose goofy raps were tailor-made for unscripted television. And as if that weren't enough, Tweed has booked the actual President of the United States, Joe Staton (Dennis Quaid)—pushed into the gig by his Chief of Staff (Willem Dafoe) and supported by his First Lady (Marcia Gay Harden)—to serve as a guest judge on the final showdown and installment of the season, broadcast live to the biggest ratings yet...or so Tweed expects.
Sally is guided to the final round by Tweed, his show producers Accordo and Ittles (Judy Greer and John Cho) and her morally bankrupt agent Chet (Seth Meyers). During her weekly-televised ascent, she manages to claw her way to the center of the nation's conscience - only to find her path to winning "American Dreamz" threatened by lovable immigrant Omer.
A reluctant contestant who just wants to fit in his new home country, Omer is told by his secret terrorist training camp operatives to make his way to the finals. Once he's within arm's reach of the winner's circle, he's to detonate a bomb that will destroy guest judge President Staton (who's there to boost his own sagging approval ratings) and simultaneously strike a symbolic blow to hedonistic American culture.
With everything riding on the biggest show of the year for Tweed, President Staton and the two hopefuls, the stage is finally set for an explosive showdown the pop-fed nation will never forget.
Here comes the near future, where fame is readymade for those willing to do anything to get it.
Welcome to filmmaker Paul Weitz's dizzying, darkly humorous satire, AMERICAN DREAMZ, a comedy set amidst the frenzied circus of celebrity. Weitz (writer/director of IN GOOD COMPANY, co-director/Academy Award®-nominated co-screenwriter of ABOUT A BOY and co-director of AMERICAN PIE) now turns his camera on a nation obsessed with instant fame, immediate celebrity and disposable hype culture.