THE PHANTOM PRESIDENT (1932)

In an opening that sets a whimsical tone for the proceedings, a White House tour guide sings a patriotic song on his tour, and the portraits of past presidents sing along. We settle in on a backroom meeting of a group of politicians who are promoting the boring, stodgy T.R. Blair (George M. Cohan) as a presidential candidate, but even they admit he lacks flair, personality, and sex appeal (this last criticism comes from a very masculine women clearly coded as a lesbian). In his private life, he wants to propose to Felicia (Claudette Colbert), the former president's daughter, but though she's fond of him, she can't take his proposal seriously. Meanwhile, Doc Varney and his medicine show come through town; Varney (also Cohan, at left) is the spitting image of Blair but with a much more gregarious personality. When Felicia meets up with him, she thinks he's Blair who has somehow become a more magnetic person. The politicians come up with a plan: substitute Varney for Blair in public appearances, and get Blair elected. Blair, jealous of the attraction between Varney and Felicia, plans to get rid of Varney after the election by shipping him off to an island in the Arctic. Some plans come to fruition, some don't.

The plot will be familiar to modern audiences as it's similar to that of DAVE, the Kevin Kline movie. But the importance of this film is historical: it's one of only two sound films that Cohan, famous songwriter and song-and-dance man of the stage, made in his career. Surprisingly (and disappointingly), Cohan is nothing like James Cagney played him in the biopic YANKEE DOODLE DANDY. Of course, he was over 50 when he made this film, and so probably past his peak as a live performer, but he seems rather listless here. The difference between Blair and Varney is actually not all that much—mostly, as Blair, Cohan frowns and looks serious, and as Varney, he smiles and seems lackadaisical rather than truly madcap. Colbert is OK, and Jimmy Durante, as Varney's huckster buddy, is definitely an acquired taste—some love him, some hate him. I can generally tolerate him, and here, he actually has a couple of moments of anarchy that are reminiscent of the Marx Brothers. Some interesting support is given by George Barbier and Sidney Toler as two of the corrupt politicians. There is an odd production number set at a political convention in which delegates from Harlem are told that Blair will move the White House from Pennsylvania Avenue to Lenox Avenue. The various effects used to allow both of Cohan's characters to appear in the same shot are nicely done. The political satire may not be especially sharp but it is, sadly, still relevant. Of interest only to film buffs, I would think. [DVD]