In Woody Allen's "Crimes and Misdemeanors," a pompous filmmaker notes that "comedy is tragedy plus time." Arriving only days before the 25th anniversary of President Richard M. Nixon's resignation, "Dick" attempts to mine humor from the Watergate scandal, an event most of us who lived through it do not remember as being particularly uproarious. Although it eventually suffers a typically 1970s energy crisis, this satire of the early Seventies has its moments, thanks to the considerably charms of Michelle Williams and Kirsten Dunst as a pair of airheads who become unlikely White House insiders.
Although Dunst has proven her mettle as a comedienne before -- she was one of the few assets of the woebegone "Drop Dead Gorgeous" -- Williams' knack for getting laughs is a minor revelation since she certainly hasn't had many chances to show it off as the hard-partying Jen on TV's "Dawson's Creek." But she's thoroughly delightful here as Arlene, a nerdy 15-year-old who abandons her crush on Bobby Sherman ("he cares about people, but also about nature and ecology") to devote all her time to worshipping the President. Eventually, this Monica-in-training will go so far as to croon a tuneless cover of Olivia Newton-John's "I Honestly Love You" into one of Nixon's many hidden tape recorders. Betsy (Dunst) is slightly brainier, although you wouldn't want to live on the difference.
During a field trip to the White House, the duo accidentally stumbles upon evidence of the bumbled Watergate burglary and are grilled by the paranoid H.R. Haldeman (Dave Foley), who asks them if they think "friendly thoughts" when they think of Nixon. After assuring him of their loyalty, Betsy and Arlene are appointed Presidential dog walkers, which gives them the chance to share their views on foreign policy with Nixon (Dan Hedaya) and Henry Kissinger (Saul Rubinek). "I just think people would like you better if you stopped the war," Arlene tells Nixon, who decides to heed her good advice.
The first two-thirds of "Dick" are often clever, with oodles of great background music (Hot Butter's "Popcorn," Stories' "Brother Louie," etc.) and amusing clips from TV of the period, including Alka Seltzer's classic "I Can't Believe I Ate the Whole Thing" spot. The wardrobe department obviously had a field day putting Dunst and Williams into a series of polyester nightmares, most of which look like a cross between K-Mart and the counterculture.
Unfortunately, around the time our heroines realize they've been betrayed by Tricky Dick and his associates, the movie begins to seem more silly than funny. A gag about marijuana-laced cookies is run into the ground, an attempt to make fun of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein never really works and the story comes to a disappointingly feeble finale. Williams and Dunst, however, remain bubbly and beguiling throughout, adding some much needed zest to what turns out to be a rather half-baked comedy. James Sanford
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