The Phantom President (1932)

Such a frustrating disappointment

Don't listen to the negative reviews

Did you people see the same film I saw?

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

The presence of the legendary George M. Cohan is enough to spark interest in this political musical comedy that took potshots at the Hoover administration just like the Gershwins had done on Broadway the year before with "Of Thee I Sing". Broadway's song-writing team of Rodgers and Hart had gone Hollywood and wrote several rhythmic tunes for this variation of "The Prisoner of Zenda" which had a similar if more action packed theme of look-alikes in government. Of course, the American presidency would get similar skewing years later with Dave.The politician Cohan plays here is a rather unromantic square with designs on a former president's daughter Claudette Colbert. She finds him boring until one day she finds Cohan literally flying over her wall in trendier duds. Actually, he's the spitting image of the presidential wanna-be, a vaudevillian who tours with Mr. Schnozolla himself, Jimmy Durante. Political money-men spot him and get the idea of subbing him for the dull real deal in the campaign. Of course, the phony Cohan gets his own idea of how the country should be run which leads to further complications! After an interesting opening concerning portraits of former presidents commenting on history through song, the film moves to the present day and it is obvious that the writers are hoping for changes in the upcoming presidential election where F.D.R. took over for what seemed like an eternity. The political Cohen, they state, would be like a continuation of Hoover, and the vaudevillian Cohen more down to earth and promising, filled with Hope. Colbert gets to play a surprisingly calculating young woman who turns the tide on the staid politician, and Durante offers much amusement, especially in his song about his middle facial appendage. But it is Cohen who will obtain the curiosity here, and he does not disappoint.

I saw this movie on PBS in New York many years ago and unfortunately before video tape. I recall reading an article about the way some of the special effects were done. Remember Cohan is playing two roles. There are many scenes in which he is talking and acting with himself. There is a particularly interesting scene on the front porch of an old house. Cohan #1 is in a rocking chair when Cohan #2 approaches him; Cohan #1 gets up to shake hands with Cohan #2- thereby shaking hands with himself. The rocking chair in the background continues to rock. After the hand shake they reverse positions and Cohan #2 walks up and gets into the rocking chair, which has never stopped rocking. Cohan #1 looks on. Done done in split screen? Apparently. but the effects artist died shortly after the film was made and to this day no one knows how he produced the effect. Great line by Colbert's character: "The night's so lovely you could eat it with a spoon".

All the actors sparkle here, even Durante (who killed more than one MGM feature in his day) is a riot. Colbert is dazzling in every scene, even while bathing a dog. Cohan is fresh and fun, too bad he didn't make any other talkies. This production wreaks of Paramount, right down to the Lubitch touches of rhyming dialogue and animals delivering a musical number laced with sexual innuendo. In one instance the camera dissolves from the back side of a jackass to the keynote speaker of the Presidential convention; some things never change and it's still fresh!Will Hays would have had a lot to say about this production if he could have gotten his hands on it.... :)

This is the movie that DAVE was based on. Cohan is a song & dance man who is a double for the President - brought in to run for a second term, as the real President has no charisma. Durante is his sidekick.This film used to be shown a lot on TV, but has been AWOL the last 10 years as far as I can determine.Cohan's only film.