Oliver Stone’s portrayal of President George W. Bush opens Friday. “W” is like a bird’s eye view on the impact of U.S. President George W. Bush's time in office. It’s not only a plain presentation of his actions and decisions, but a long term debate of his actions and consequences in the future. In other words, the movie is rather subjective. Stone is also known for other political-oriented works such as “J.F.K.” and “Nixon,” also dismissed allegations regarding the movie being based on his personal opinions.

Despite its specific and very well balanced energy, the movie is far from being specifically spectacular, but it is incredibly plausible. Stone is working based on a Stanley Weiser screenplay, but it's highly probable to assume he had considerable input into the writing. And it is not a flattering portrait. Moreover Weiser told journalists he “had to park all my politics at the door. Before writing this I couldn’t even bear to listen to Bush. I had to turn it off.”

Bush is shown as shallow, boorish and impatient, less the Decider than a tool of Rove (Toby Jones) and Dick Cheney (Richard Dreyfuss). But Stone said the actors were not meant to be "look-alikes" but "feel-alikes."
Josh Brolin does a very good job when impersonating the President. But the fact that little is known about his real inner life, the character isn’t as rich as one may want and expect. In trying to underline his fears and insecurities, Stone comes up with a horribly clichéd image: Bush standing alone in the outfield of an empty baseball stadium listening to the imaginary cheers of the crowd.

Stone tries to justify Bush’s actions and decisions by showing bits of his childhood. "W." is also the story of a son who can never live up to the expectations of his patrician father. And it is his father’s relations who save him from becoming a looser. The father is belittling a son, George H.W. cautioning George W. to stick to simple things: "Maybe better you stay out of the barrel,'' the senior Bush tells his son, and leave the family's political legacy to younger brother Jeb.

Stone says it's part of what drove the younger Bush into the White House: to show his doubters wrong: "Someone who could step into that path and out-father his father,'' the 61-year-old director suggests.

Stone, Brolin and the filmmaking team believe they are crafting a biography so honest that loyal Republicans and the Bushes themselves might see it. The first said he doubted Bush, who is not a movie buff, would watch “W.”, when it is released on October 17.

But all in all, the straightforwardness of “W.” suggests that Mr. Stone set out to make a critical biography but somehow changed his plan. The director has built a career on revealing hidden truths, but made a movie that feels too familiar and too general at the same time.