Southside with You

It's time to go to the punside with me, because there will be some corny puns in my review of The Obamas "first date" flick "Southside With You"; even though I have a feeling you might find them so corny that they will be in the grounds of pun impeachment. Anyways, "Southside With You" is a splendid, dialogue-orientated film that focuses on Barrack and Michelle's first date on a hot, summer Chicago day in 1989. Writer-Director Richard Tanne nicely handles the movie on the verbal interaction within our main protagonists, and foreshadows the communicative talents of who would be the future President and First Lady. Sure, you can call "Southside With You", "Before Sunrise: The Obama Moon" but there is nothing wrong with that; even though "Before Sunrise" is a much better movie. Parker Sawyers gives a presidential first-rate performance as the young Barack, and Tika Sumpter will make you think "She is Michelle" from the start in her turn as the future Mrs. Obama. So I think the popular vote will side with "Southside With You" if you give it a chance. **** Good

There wasn't much to this film, so I'll be brief. "Southside with You" wasn't really what I expected it to be. It wasn't bad and it wasn't good. It was just a simple love story with powerful messages running through it, which is a good thing. I thought there would be more to this film like a lot of romantic drama and a more complex story involving the two main characters which could have built up into the present relationship they have now. I think the writer / director created this film more as a tool to spread valuable lessons rather than making it for entertainment. In that sense, it reminded me of the film "The Nativity Story", a film about the events of Mary and Joseph that led up to the birth of Christ, which was a film I thought, was made primarily to convey a message rather than entertain. The acting from Parker Sawyers and Tika Sumpter was good. Parker Sawyers actually reminded me of Barak Obama with his performance and the Spike Lee's "Do the Right Thing" scene was fitting. In my opinion this isn't the kind of film you should expect a lot out of, but what can be taken out of the lessons it presents is a good thing.

Richard Tanne's 'Southside with You' is a pleasant surprise. A Small Little Gem, that's both charming & engrossing. And if you even thought watching the former U.S President & His Wife/Former First Lady going on their first date as a rather uninteresting concept for a film ...think again!

'Southside with You' Synopsis: The film chronicles the summer 1989 afternoon when the future President of the United States, Barack Obama, wooed his future First Lady, Michelle Obama, on a first date across Chicago's South Side.

'Southside with You' is a delightful tale of 2 people who went on to create history. You watch & observe them. Its all heart. 'Southside with You' is a love-story, but it also covers themes of racism & how America was back in the late 1980's. Although done subtly, the message is out loud and clear. Obama's Voice for equality & patience, is shown in great strength & it also shows us a leader who later came into power, because he knew the drill.

Tanne's Screenplay is excellent. The Writing is of Superior Quality. Not for a minute, does the Writing take a dip, its consistently crisp. Tanne's Direction, too, is superb. He's handled the film with precision. Cinematography is perfect. Editing is neat, culminating the film within a sharp 84-minutes. Art & Costume Design are perfectly done.

Performance-Wise: Parker Sawyers and Tika Sumpter as a young Barack Obama and Michelle Robinson, respectively, bring in their A-Game. Parker is a revelation, channeling Obama with grit & tenderness. Tika is a live-wire, She portrays Michelle, with unmistakably honesty. Both the actors, deserve more work in the movies. They've got the stuff.

On the whole, 'Southside with You' is Magnificent. Don't dare to miss it.

And yes, I do miss the America when Obama was President!

This is one of the worst films I've ever seen. And it's not that it's about the Obamas, or that it's political (it's not), or even that it is almost unbelievable (in spite of the fact that everything really did happen at some point). It's that the producer-writer-director is so obviously infatuated with the Obamas that he ended up making a movie which comes off as one big, fat, sloppy kiss. The movie spans one afternoon and evening. There's no conflict, there's no character development, there's no new information. The actors are well cast, and they do the best they can with what they're given. That may make for a sweet photo montage, but it doesn't tell a story (which has already been told many times anyway). Even if every incident depicted happened in the space of one day (which they almost certainly did not), no one would believe it. If there is one cliché that was missed, there was no place left to put it. If there was room for one more tracking shot, the audience would fall asleep. In short, if you are head-over-heels in love with the Obamas, you may love this outing. Otherwise....

This film tells the story of how Barack Obama meets Michelle, his future wife, in the Southside of Chicago. They work in the same law firm, meet up for a day of activities, and get to know each other better.

"Southside with You" reminds me of the "Before Sunrise" series, where two people walk around and talk all the time. People say this kind of film is romantic, but I find them very boring. "Southside with You" is very similar, but with one slight difference - it showcases how brilliant and clever Obama is, and hence he wins Michelle's tough and seemingly impenetrable heart. I cannot say I enjoyed the film so much, though I am impressed by how eloquent Obama is portrayed to be. Having this film made around this time makes people wonder whether there is any political reason for it. To sum up, I do not think this is my type of film.