Dave

"In a country where anybody can become President, anybody just did."

1993 1h 50m EN

👍

6.7

SOLID

★6.7TMDB · 872

Comedy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A sweet-natured Temp Agency operator and amateur Presidential look-alike is recruited by the Secret Service to become a temporary stand-in for the President of the United States.

“In a country where anybody can become President, anybody just did.”

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Cast

Kevin Kline
Dave Kovic / Bill Mitchell
Sigourney Weaver
Ellen Mitchell
Frank Langella
Bob Alexander
Kevin Dunn
Alan Reed
Ving Rhames
Duane Stevenson
Ben Kingsley
Vice-President Nance
Charles Grodin
Murray Blum
Faith Prince
Alice

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Ivan Reitman
Writers: Gary Ross
Languages: Spanish, English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 3.3× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

33 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Spanish, English.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Ivan Reitman, shot by Adam Greenberg. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by James Newton Howard. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Sheldon Kahn shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver and Frank Langella carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "In a country where anybody can become President, anybody just did.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Ivan Reitman directs. Adam Greenberg behind the camera. James Newton Howard scores. Sheldon Kahn cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in Spanish, English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Made its money back 3.3× over at the box office.
233 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: Spanish, English.
4Directed by Ivan Reitman, shot by Adam Greenberg. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by James Newton Howard. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Sheldon Kahn shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver and Frank Langella carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "In a country where anybody can become President, anybody just did.".
9IMDB entry: tt0106673 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 12 themes, including "coma", "usa president", "the white house", "apoplectic stroke".

The technical file

Cinematography: Adam Greenberg
Original score: James Newton Howard
Editing: Sheldon Kahn
Production design: J. Michael Riva
Costume design: Richard Hornung
Makeup / hair: Marlene D. Williams
Sound: Gary C. Bourgeois
Runtime: 110 min · 1h 50m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $28,000,000
Box office: $92,000,000
Return: 329% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: Dave (1993)

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Ivan Reitman

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Rob2023-06-04
★ 8/10
A lovely romantic comedy in that true eighties style. A little charmer of a movie starring the ever-watchable Kevin Kline. I'll admit I'm pretty old-fashioned and, even in today's evil world, I cling to the hope there are still good-hearted people out there somewhere. This is one of those movies keeping that hope alive. Let the soft side of you out and enjoy this film.
CinemaSerf2025-06-19
★ 7/10
Kevin Kline is “Dave”, an unassuming fellow who is recruited by the Secret Service to double for the President of the USA whilst he goes for some extracurricular horizontal jogging. It’s a simple task. Turn up, smile, wave, don’t speak - then get in the car! Well that’s the theory, but when the actual president gets a bit too carried away with his activities, he ends up in a coma and “Dave” with a slightly longer booking in the Oval Office. It turns out that the First Couple aren’t especially close, so ambitiously ruthless Chief of Staff “Bob” (Frank Langella) decides that so long as he can keep this predicament secret for long enough, he can manoeuvre himself into pole position for the succession. First Lady “Ellen” (Sigourney Weaver) is no fool though and she quickly spots a change in her now charming, friendly and clever husband. Now, think “Man in the Iron Mask”, only this mask is one of public relations as she and “Dave” start to realise the potential for themselves and their country from this situation. As he does so often, Langella steals his scenes - especially as the plot thickens and his lucidity comes into comedy question, but there are also quite a fun series of scenes from Ben Kingsley as the hapless VP “Nance” and from Ving Rhames as his no-nonsense body guard. There’s plenty of fun chemistry between Weaver and Kline as it rolls along and by the end, you are definitely rooting for the little guy.