“The Obama Effect” isn’t exactly raking in the cash at the box office.
The new film, which follows a middle-aged man (Charles S. Dutton) who drops everything to support Sen. Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign, has made a measly $110,000 so far since July 13.
To be fair, the film’s widest theatrical release count up until now has been 25 theaters – although “2016: Obama’s America” has made $132,000 so far on far fewer screens since its own July 13 release.
But what do film critics – part of Obama’s base – have to say about “Effect?” Reviews have been hard to find online, but today the prestigious Hollywood trade magazine Variety weighed in.
The Variety review sounds like it was written by Team Romney despite the fact that the author is a veteran liberal journalist.
Even avid supporters of the current U.S. president may be dumbfounded by the jaw-dropping, head-scratching mess that is “The Obama Effect.” Despite the unassailably good intentions of director/co-writer/star Charles S. Dutton, this amateurish inspirational comedy-drama comes off as a shrill mashup of mixed signals and muddled messaging.
“Unassailably good intentions?” We’re sure that comment would be included had the film featured a devout Mormon who dropped everything to support Mitt Romney’s run for the White House.
Perhaps the oddest thing about “The Obama Effect” can be found at RottenTomatoes.com, a site dedicated to compiling reviews of movie releases. Currently, there aren’t any reviews for the film listed on the site from professional critics. Even the Variety review isn’t there.