A bold prediction, or at least a couple of funny lines

Hollywood requires that movies achieve an identity and pedigree before being green lit. Identities are 15 to 20 word descriptions of the story. It cannot be original, far too risky… It has to be a composite of two things that have worked in the past.

An example of an identity would be Risky Business meets Home Alone ,only the guy is in his late 30s and this is his first time away from his wife and kids. The movie opens with him saying goodbye to everyone, his wife telling him there is food in the freezer and not to worry. He acts worried, but is clearly happy to have time alone.

In a  montage we see him doing absolutely nothing and getting bored over the course of 45 minutes. He sits in front of the television and flicks channels, hand tucked into his belt “Al Bundy style."  As lethargy sweeps his body, he comes across the beginning of Risky Business. The chords of "Old Time Rock 'n Roll" brings a smile to his face and as the camera pans out… We see the entrance to the living room is the exact same as the shot of Tom Cruise dancing in his underwear.

Yikes it is too easy.

The pedigree part is a lot harder. You have to massage the egos to collaborate. You need a star, a second star, eye candy and a director who can work with the eye candy and second star. 

When it all comes together you have a master piece,  when it doesn't... the project is released straight to DVD.

Because Hollywood is so successful at selling blind men rats ass holes as wedding rings, their example is used all the time.

Take the charm and eloquence of  a sincere Eddie Haskell, with the generosity and coolness of Howie Mandel, sprinkle in a couple of pinches of the confidence and sophistication of Johnny Depp… Then add the optimism and statesmanship of Ronald Reagan and you know what you have?

A call for civility, a call for a new investment in infrastructure, a call for freezing the budget and ending earmarks, a call for our country to fulfill its promise, to come together and thrive because we are diverse, a mandate to use the power of Washington to save our nation, federal programs, state programs, a laser-like focus on jobs and the economy for the third year in a row.

Rhetoric and reality are rarely joined at the hip. Now is the time for intuition backed by knowledge and experience to supersede the “speeches are peaches” mindset of the last 30 months. The State of the Union Address is an obligation of the ruling class to “explain itself” to the voters. This is not a time for Axel Foley to star in Mommy Dearest.