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BY TOM MEEK
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A former president of the United States moves to a small town in Maine (Mooseport, Kennebunkport, you get the idea) and runs for mayor. The election is supposed to be a gimme (he’s to run unopposed), but instead he finds himself opposed by the local handyman. Monroe Cole (Gene Hackman), we’re told, is the most popular president ever, yet he comes off as a megalomaniac with a hawkish bent. "Handy" Harrison (Ray Romano, from, Everyone Loves Raymond), the alleged nice guy, doesn’t turn out to be any better; he’s a mealy-mouthed commitment-phobe in desperate need of a wardrobe makeover. Caught at the center of it all are a multi-million-dollar book deal and the heart of Handy’s girlfriend (Maura Tierney), who reluctantly accepts a date with the former commander-in-chief. Director Daniel Petrie maintains a brisk enough pace that you don’t always notice you’re not laughing. Hackman puts in time in a thankless role, and Romano, whose big coming-out party this is supposed to be, looks about as ready for the big screen as his slovenly character does for the Oval Office.
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