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IMDbPro

Bob Roberts

  • 1992
  • R
  • 1h 42m
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
16K
YOUR RATING
Tim Robbins in Bob Roberts (1992)
Home Video Trailer from Miramax
Play trailer2:06
1 Video
53 Photos
SatireComedyDrama

A conservative folk singer turns his hand to politics and runs for the U.S. Senate, but he is not above dirty tricks and smear campaigns to gain an advantage over his opponent.A conservative folk singer turns his hand to politics and runs for the U.S. Senate, but he is not above dirty tricks and smear campaigns to gain an advantage over his opponent.A conservative folk singer turns his hand to politics and runs for the U.S. Senate, but he is not above dirty tricks and smear campaigns to gain an advantage over his opponent.

  • Director
    • Tim Robbins
  • Writer
    • Tim Robbins
  • Stars
    • Tim Robbins
    • Giancarlo Esposito
    • Alan Rickman
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    7.0/10
    16K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Tim Robbins
    • Writer
      • Tim Robbins
    • Stars
      • Tim Robbins
      • Giancarlo Esposito
      • Alan Rickman
    • 110User reviews
    • 39Critic reviews
    • 70Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 4 wins & 4 nominations total

    Videos1

    Bob Roberts
    Trailer 2:06
    Bob Roberts

    Photos53

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    Top cast83

    Edit
    Tim Robbins
    Tim Robbins
    • Bob Roberts
    Giancarlo Esposito
    Giancarlo Esposito
    • Bugs Raplin
    Alan Rickman
    Alan Rickman
    • Lukas Hart III
    Ray Wise
    Ray Wise
    • Chet MacGregor
    Brian Murray
    Brian Murray
    • Terry Manchester
    Gore Vidal
    Gore Vidal
    • Senator Brickley Paiste
    Rebecca Jenkins
    Rebecca Jenkins
    • Delores Perrigrew
    Harry Lennix
    Harry Lennix
    • Franklin Dockett
    John Ottavino
    • Clark Anderson
    Robert Stanton
    Robert Stanton
    • Bart Macklerooney
    Kelly Willis
    • Clarissa Flan
    Merrilee Dale
    • Polly Roberts
    Tom Atkins
    Tom Atkins
    • Dr. Caleb Menck
    David Strathairn
    David Strathairn
    • Mack Laflin
    James Spader
    James Spader
    • Chuck Marlin
    Pamela Reed
    Pamela Reed
    • Carol Cruise
    Helen Hunt
    Helen Hunt
    • Rose Pondell
    Eva Amurri
    Eva Amurri
    • Child in Hospital
    • Director
      • Tim Robbins
    • Writer
      • Tim Robbins
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews110

    7.016.1K
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    Featured reviews

    SunRock17

    The History Of The Present Day

    An amazing work!

    Twice I had to confirm the release date of 1992 since this film's precise and uncanny applicability to the events of this last year were amazing. The political dynamic under which this country suffers today - along with the cabal currently installed in the White House that employed precisely the same tactics as defined in this film - were recreated, or more accurately foretold, with an uncanny truthfulness, precise focus, and vivid clarity.

    Tim Robbins' direction, writing, and acting were all phenomenal; I never really fully appreciated his talent and brilliance until this film; Gore Vidal's contribution was a special treat from both a fine actor and a remarkable intellect.

    Well worth the time - and a replay or two to capture, fully, all of the nuance and insight of this fine work.
    jce06

    Might be the best political satire of all time

    Tim Robbins has made one heck of a statement with this film presenting politics as it really is, crooked and disturbing. The screenplay is brilliantly clever brimming with brutal honesty about the political battle in washington.Robbins plays the right-wing politician perfectly portraying a crooked yuppie business man willing to do anything to get elected to the US Senate a must see film one of the best films of the decade.
    ajdagreat

    Why is this movie so offensive?

    I didn't understand why Republicans were so offended by this movie. Bob Roberts's political affiliation had nothing to do with his dirty campaign tricks. Bob Roberts could just as easily have been a Democrat. This film is not mocking Republican dishonesty, but political dishonesty. Tim Robbins does a great job as an evil, hypocritical folk singer / politician, and there is a very good supporting cast. Not laugh-out-loud funny, but bitingly satirical and creepy.
    8What_A_Shame

    Bob Roberts: Underrated Classic.

    Okay, make no mistake: Bob Roberts is definitely not the most subtle film ever made. It's not so much a veiled attack on the American right-wing as it is an all singing, all dancing celluloid spit in the Republican party's face. It's also as paranoid as a junkie, and almost proudly one sided, which might be why it has slipped into relative obscurity - it's a film that could be very easily dismissed as a piece of left-wing propaganda, directed by and starring Tim Robbins, an outspokenly leftist actor.

    But, Bob Roberts is a film that deserves a lot more attention than it receives, largely because unlike a lot of political comedies, it's actually funny.

    Bob Roberts is a mockumentary about a right wing politician/folk singer named (unsurprisingly) Bob Roberts. Roberts is a kind of anti Bob Dylan, whose modus operandi is to emulate the spirit of the folk singing radicals and then deliberately turn their message on its head - he sings songs about enforcing the death penalty on drug dealers, and the positives of investing in the stock market. Dylan provides such an obvious touchstone for the character that it's arguable the whole film is as much a spoof of the Dylan documentary Don't Look Back as it is a political satire.  The songs are a good example of what makes this film work. Sure, they're unashamedly political and barbed - they're the kind of spoofs that you'll now find dime a dozen on youtube - but they are so painfully earnest and straightfaced that they're kind of hypnotic. In Bob Roberts, Robbins has created a character who absolutely believes the terrible and terrifying things he sings about, and he plays the part with a wide eyed enthusiasm that makes you laugh, but in that oh so unsettling "I'm genuinely disturbed by this" kind of way.  The jokes are totally underplayed, save for an out of place 'before they were famous' Jack Black cameo appearance. He's the only actor who inhabits his role as if it's meant to be funny, all but giving the audience a big fourth wall breaking wink. Everyone else, however, lets the humour come naturally from the insanity of what they're saying: they don't gurn to the camera. From Alan Rickman's performance as the shadowy Big Business agent to Gore Vidal as Bob Roberts' running mate, the rest of the cast play the thing totally straight-faced.

    Sure, the movie's pretty preachy, but it never becomes boring: at a lean 102 minutes, it's a freight train of a film, spitting out characters, situations, and genuinely thrilling plot twists.

    Best of all is the film's ending, which is as cutting as the punchline to a sick joke. There's no messing around to this one. The conclusion socks you in the guts then carries on its way, whistling Bob Roberts' "Drugs Stink" as it goes.
    8gmh-46567

    Ahead of it's time.

    This film predicts the current state of the USA. From a politician with a rebel/conservative persona who has people worshiping him and even mobilize for their cause. It seems that every named character is a recognizable face from the 90's. It's a really well made political satire like no other I've seen.

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    Related interests

    Peter Sellers in Dr. Folamour ou : comment j'ai appris à ne plus m'en faire et à aimer la bombe (1964)
    Satire
    Will Ferrell in Présentateur vedette: La légende de Ron Burgundy (2004)
    Comedy
    Mahershala Ali and Alex R. Hibbert in Moonlight (2016)
    Drama

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      A soundtrack album was due for release on Warner Bros. Records, but it was not released because Tim Robbins didn't want the songs played outside of the movie's context.
    • Goofs
      In a scene where Bob gets off the bus in "Harrisburg" a police barrier clearly says "City of Philadelphia."
    • Quotes

      Bob Roberts: [singing] Grandma felt guilty 'bout being so rich and it bothered her until the day she died. But I will take my inheritance and invest it with pride, yes invest it with pride.

    • Crazy credits
      The credits conclude with one screen-filling four-letter word: "VOTE".
    • Connections
      Featured in Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: Sister Act/Encino Man/Alien³/Far and Away (1992)
    • Soundtracks
      What Did The Teacher Tell You
      Music and Lyrics by David Robbins & Tim Robbins

      Produced and Arranged by David Robbins

      Vocals by Novi Novog

      Viola by Novi Novog

      Robbins Egg Music (c) 1992, A.S.C.A.P.

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    FAQ20

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 16, 1992 (France)
    • Countries of origin
      • United Kingdom
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • German
    • Also known as
      • El ciudadano Bob Roberts
    • Filming locations
      • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
    • Production companies
      • Miramax
      • Live Entertainment
      • Polygram Filmed Entertainment
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $3,900,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $4,479,470
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $314,275
      • Sep 7, 1992
    • Gross worldwide
      • $4,479,470
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 42m(102 min)
    • Sound mix
      • Dolby
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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