History Film / TheAmericanPresident

** Sorkin later recycles the CodeName for TheWestWing mid-season 1.

'''Andrew:''' At ease, AJ. '''At ease!'''

-->'''A.J:''' [[LampshadeHanging I could pass her a note before study hall.]]

** A. J. = Leo
** Robin = C. J.

US President Andrew Shepherd (Douglas), previously the governor of Wisconsin and a widower/single father, is on top of the world as the movie starts. His poll numbers are excellent, and together with his staff, which includes Chief of Staff A. J. [=MacInerney=] (Sheen) and Lewis Rothschild (Fox), he is planning to pass a major new crime bill. However, things change when he meets Sydney Ellen Wade (Bening), an environmental lobbyist who has been hired to push for new legislation. After the typical MeetCute, Shepherd asks her out, and they begin dating, which of course draws major media interest.

* {{Adorkable}}: Pres. Shephard may be the most powerful man in the world but he is also just a guy who wants to win the heart of the girl he likes and basically can't stop smiling the first time he meets her. (And he gets in a great line concerning the tag of "the most powerful man in the world" while professing he's nervous about the sex they're about to have)

* AmbiguousSyntax: In an example of ComicallyMissingThePoint:
-->'''Robin [=McCall=]:''' How do you want me to handle the Sydney issue?
-->'''President Andrew Shepherd:''' "The Sydney issue"?
-->'''Lewis Rothschild:''' We should have a consensus on how the White House is going to handle it.
-->'''President Andrew Shepherd:''' Well I sure hope the Sydney issue refers in some way to a problem we're having with Australia, because if it's anything else--
* BorrowedCatchphrase: In an unscripted (in-universe) speech savaging Bob Rumson for using Sydney to smear him, Andy turns Rumson's catchphrase around: "My name is Andrew Shepherd, and I ''am'' the President!"

-->'''Shepherd:''' I'm the Commander-In-Chief of the most powerful army in the world, you don't think I can drive ten blocks?
-->'''Sydney:''' ''(unexpectedly entering the room)'' Just stay away from [=DuPont=] Circle, I hear it's murder this time of day.
* BurningTheFlag: Bob Rumson attempts to smear Shepherd with a picture of Sydney burning an American flag during a late-'80s anti-apartheid demonstration. (Presumably they were demonstrating against US inaction or something to that effect.)
* CantBelieveISaidThat: When Janie tells Shepherd his cousin can't make it to the State Dinner, Robin asks if he's going alone, and says, "We've never had a problem parading you around as the lonely widower." Both Janie and Shepherd look up at this, and Robin immediately apologizes, saying, "I can't believe I said that. I would never dream of disrespecting the memory of your late wife."
* CaptainObvious: "My name is Bob Rumson, and I'm running for President!"
--> '''President Shepherd:''' [[LampshadeHanging It's a good thing he said that]], because those people were about ready to [[DeadpanSnarker buy some Amway products!]]
* ComicallyMissingThePoint: In addition to the AmbiguousSyntax entry above, there's this scene where Sydney tries to explain why she and Andrew Shepherd should not see each other:
-->'''Shepherd''': You want a drink? Lemme take your coat.\\
'''Sydney''': Mr. President, this isn't gonna work.\\
'''Shepherd''': Sure it will. You button the top button, and it doesn't fall off the hanger.

* TheCreon: A.J. implies he is one when Andrew angrily demands to know why throughout his political career, A.J. has never sought office and has always been one step behind him, content to work as a loyal advisor. As A.J. puts it:
-->Because if I wasn't, you'd be the most popular history teacher at the University of Wisconsin.

* EmotionalRegression: Shepard has been out of the dating loop for a ''long time'', so his attempts at learning about Sydney come across as high school-ish. {{Lampshaded}} by A.J.: "I could pass her a note before study hall."
* EverybodyCallsHimBarkeep: Much to his chagrin, everyone calls Shepherd "Mr. President", including close friends playing pool in private.
** This is actually the central theme of the movie: are Andrew Shepherd and the President of the United States two separate entities, or are they one and the same? And being the President, does Andrew have any right or expectation of a private life?

-->'''Shepherd:''' How much do you make?
-->'''Wade:''' More than you do, Mr. President.
-->'''Shepherd:''' The name is Andy. How much money do you make?
-->'''Wade:''' What the hell does it matter how much money I make!?
-->'''Shepherd:''' You raise your voice to the president?

-->'''Lucy:''' It's supposed to be tight. It's supposed to make you look regal.
-->'''Shepherd:''' Is it supposed to cut off the blood flow to my face?
* FieryRedhead: Sydney.

* FriendlyAddressPrivileges: {{Defied}}: A.J. consistently calls Andrew "Mr. President" even when they're alone, despite them having been the best of friends for years. (When Andrew calls him out on this once, he delivers his reply in the form of a ShoutOut to Dr. Seuss.)
-->'''A.J.:''' Nice shot, Mr. President.
-->'''Andrew:''' "Nice shot, ''Mr. President''"?! You won't even call me by my name when we're playing pool?
-->'''A.J.:''' I will not do it playing pool. I will not do it in a school. I do not like green eggs and ham. I do not like them, Sam-I-Am.
-->'''Andrew:''' At ease, AJ. '''At ease!'''
* GilliganCut: When the amount of coverage starts to heat up, Sydney goes to the White House, telling her sister that she plans to end their relationship. She ends up consummating it instead.

* InstantlyProvenWrong: Sydney attempts to console Solomon about her date with Shepherd by claiming it was a one time thing with zero attachment. Of course in that very same instant a staffer walks into the office with a gift basket (containing a Virgina Ham no less, because VA is her home state, and he was trying to be clever) and a note that Shepherd wrote personally.

'''Solomon:''' [[ItMakesSenseInContext There's never an egg timer around when you need one.]][[labelnote:*]]Solomon was just saying to Sydney that she could become a major power player in D.C., but if she didn't cut off this relationship, the time takes for her to go from hired gun to cocktail-party joke could be clocked with an egg timer.[[/labelnote]]

* MeetCute: See RightBehindMe.
* MistakenForPrankCall: Shepherd's first attempt to talk on the phone to Sydney Ellen Wade goes badly, with her thinking he is a colleague trying to give his best Andrew Shepherd impression.
-->'''Sydney Ellen Wade:''' Hello?
-->'''President Andrew Shepherd:''' Yeah, hi, is this Sydney?
-->'''Sydney:''' Leo?
-->'''Shepherd:''' No, this is Andrew Shepherd.
-->'''Sydney:''' Oh! It's Andrew Shepherd! Yeah, you're hilarious, Richard, you're just a regular riot!
-->'''Shepherd:''' No, this isn't Richard, this is Andrew Shepherd.
-->'''Sydney:''' Oh! Well, I'm so glad you called, because I forgot to tell you today what a nice ass you have. I'm also impressed that you were able to get my phone number given the fact that I don't have a phone. Good night, Richard.
-->'''Shepherd:''' Uh, this isn't Richard- ''[Sydney hangs up]'' This used to be easier.

-->'''Shepherd:''' ''[amused]'' Yeah, I think she remembers me.

-->'''Sydney''': I stood in the middle of the Oval Office and I made it very clear that from now on, he who doesn't take the GDC seriously does so at his peril!\\
'''Beth''': And then you walked out the wrong door.\\
'''Sydney''': Are you gonna be throwing that back at me the rest of my life?\\
'''Beth''': That's my current plan, yes.

-->'''Sydney:''' Hello?
-->'''Shepherd:''' Sydney...
-->'''Sydney:''' Are you learning-impaired?
-->'''Shepherd:''' Listen, do me a favor. Hang up the phone.
-->'''Sydney:''' [[FlatWhat What?]]
-->'''Shepherd:''' Hang up the phone and dial 456-1414. When you get the White House operator, give her your name and tell her you want to speak to the President. ''[hangs up]''

* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: A quite literal example. Andy interrupts a press conference at the end of the film to improvise a speech directly calling out Rumson and his cadre for attacking Sydney to smear him. See also WorldOfCardboardSpeech, below.

* RousingSpeech: The climax is Shepherd delivering one of these. And an awesome one at that.

* SarcasmBlind: Shepherd's aide Janie is going over his daily schedule with him. She mentions a meeting with American Fisheries and that they'll be giving him a 200-pound halibut. Shepherd tells her to make a note that they need to schedule more events where someone gives him a really big fish. Janie actually starts writing this down, then Shepherd says, "Janie, I'm kidding."
* SarcasticConfession: Not done on purpose, but when Shepherd introduces himself over the phone to Wade she doesn't believe him. She then proceeds to mock him, figuring he was a friend pulling a prank. Shepherd ''then'' gives her the White House number (where the operator is ready to connect her call) in order to convince her.

* ShoutOut:
-->''[President Shepherd and A.J. are playing pool]''
-->'''A.J.:''' Nice shot, Mr. President.
-->'''President Shepherd:''' 'Nice shot, Mr. President?' You won't even call me by my name when we're playing pool?
-->'''A.J.:''' [[Creator/DrSeuss I will not do it playing pool, I will not do it in a school. I do not like green eggs and ham, I do not like them, Sam I Am.]]
-->'''President Shepherd:''' At ease, A.J., at ease.

* SpiritualSuccessor: ''Series/TheWestWing''
* StrawmanPolitical: Bob Rumson, GOP candidate.

-->'''President Shepherd:''' Lewis, however much coffee you drink in the morning, I want you to reduce it by half.\\

'''President Shepherd:''' Hit yourself over the head with a baseball bat?
* VillainHasAPoint: Senator Bob Rumson, who's running in the Republican primary, is a {{jerkass}} but he does raise the shell of a good point: While in theory, as a single man Andy should be able to date whomever he likes, Sydney ''is'' a professional lobbyist and they met while she was on the job lobbying Andrew Shepherd the President. Ergo, whether they're mixing business with pleasure, as it were, is not in and of itself a bad question to ask (and as a member of Congress, part of Rumson's job really ''is'' to act as a check on the President).

* WhamLine: "...because ''they don't know the '''difference.'''''"

-->'''Sydney''': Andy, you're doing that thing with your face.

-->''Because if I wasn't, you'd be the most popular history teacher at the University of Wisconsin.''

-->'''Because if I wasn't, you'd be the most popular history teacher at the University of Wisconsin.'''

* TheCreon: A.J. implies he is one when Andrew angrily demands to know why throughout his political career, A.J. has never sought office and has always been one step behind him, content to work as a loyal advisor. As A.J. puts it: -->'''Because if I wasn't, you'd be the most popular history teacher at the University of Wisconsin.'''

* InstantlyProvenWrong: Sydney attempts to console Solomon about her date with Shepherd by claiming it was a one time thing with zero attachment. Of course in that very same instant a messenger walks into the office with a gift basket and a note that Shepherd wrote personally.
-->'''Messenger:''' Congratulations, Sydney. You're the President's girlfriend!\\
'''Solomon:''' [[ItMakesSenseInContext There's never an egg timer around when you need one.]]

*** An example of TruthInTelevision. Shortly after UsefulNotes/BarackObama was elected in 2008, he made a phone call to Florida Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. [[https://www.cbsnews.com/news/congresswoman-twice-hangs-up-on-obama/ She hung up on him, saying that she thought it was a prank from a local radio station.]] Within minutes, Obama's Chief-of-Staff Rahm Emanuel called her to say that President-Elect Obama wanted to speak with her...and she hung up on him too. Obama had to ask a friend and fellow Congressman of Ros-Lehtinen's to call and convince her that she was not being pranked, and the President-Elect was really trying to call her.

* VillainHasAPoint: Senator Bob Rumson, who's running in the Republican primary, is a {{jerkass}} but he does raise the shell of a good point: While in theory, as a single man Andy should be able to date whomever he likes, Sydney ''is'' a professional lobbyist and they met while she was on the job lobbying Andrew Shepherd the President. Ergo, whether they're mixing business with pleasure, as it were, is not in and of itself a bad question to ask.

->''"You want a character debate, Bob? You better stick with me, 'cause Sydney Ellen Wade is way out of your league.''

''The American President'' is a 1995 romantic drama directed by Creator/RobReiner (in his first film after the infamous ''Film/{{North}}'') and written by Creator/AaronSorkin, starring MichaelDouglas, Annette Bening, Creator/MichaelJFox, and Creator/MartinSheen. These days it is most noted for being basically a dress rehearsal for Sorkin's later TV series ''Series/TheWestWing'', which included a number of the same actors, albeit in different parts.

* VerbalBackspace: Shepherd does this while trying to find a way to reign Lewis in.

-->'''A.J.:''' I will not do it playing pool. I will not do it in a school. I do not like green eggs and ham. I do not like them, Sam I am.

* AmericanTitle

* BorrowedCatchphrase[=/=]IronicEcho: In an unscripted (in-universe) speech savaging Bob Rumson for using Sydney to smear him, Andy turns Rumson's catchphrase around: "My name is Andrew Shepherd, and I ''am'' the President!"

* MistakenForPrankCall[=/=]MistakenForAnImpostor: Shepherd's first attempt to talk on the phone to Sydney Ellen Wade goes badly, with her thinking he is a colleague trying to give his best Andrew Shepherd impression.

* {{Expy}}: Most of the major characters are embryonic versions of the cast of Sorkin's ''TheWestWing'', which makes watching it an interesting experience for fans of the show. For instance:

* SpiritualSuccessor: ''TheWestWing''

* NeverLiveItDown: Sydney nearly walks through the wrong door into the President's private office after their first meeting. Her sister finds this endlessly amusing.

* SarcasticConfession: Not done on purpose, but when Shepard introduces himself over the phone to Wade she doesn't believe him. She then proceeds to mock him, figuring he was a friend pulling a prank. Shepard ''then'' gives her the White House number (where the operator is ready to connect her call) in order to convince her.

* BrickJoke: Sydney shows up late for a holiday gathering and complains about getting stuck on [=DuPont=] Circle again. Towards the end of the movie, Shepherd wants to drive to Sydneys's house and try to win her back after their huge argument, but A.J. doesn't like the idea:

* BrickJoke: Sydney shows up late for a holiday gathering and complains about getting stuck on DuPont Circle again. Towards the end of the movie, Shepherd wants to drive to Sydneys's house and try to win her back after their huge argument, but A.J. doesn't like the idea:

-->'''Sydney:''' ''(unexpectedly entering the room)'' Just stay away from DuPont Circle, I hear it's murder this time of day.