The Shallowness of the American Dream

 
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                    Warning: this article contains major plot spoilers

With the number of television talent shows that fill the television schedules, the time was overdue for a  film to be made about them. However, American Dreamz not only targets the shameless and ambitious wannabes these shows attract, but also aims at the American President and the conflict in Iraq. Opinion is divided on whether the film hits its targets successfully or not. Ty Burr writes in the Boston Globe that, ‘American Dreamz is a political satire that’s eerily emblematic of the moment we’re living in: smart, spring-loaded with pop culture references, and far too good-natured to do any lasting damage.’ The show featured in the film is clearly parodying American Idol (the hugely successful American version of Pop Idol) with some of the contestants modelled on famous American Idol contestants (Carrie Underwood, Clay Aiken, Bo Bice, for example).

The American President (Dennis Quaid) is worried. He has begun reading newspapers for the first time and subsequently has begun questioning his black and white view of the world. This worries his paranoid Chief of Staff (Willem Dafoe) as the President insists on staying in his room and reading. With the public wondering what is wrong with their President who has not been seen in public for weeks, the Chief of Staff books him to be on American Dreamz, the most popular show on American television.

American Dreamz is hosted by Martin Tweed (Hugh Grant), who loathes his job and himself despite the enormous success and wealth he has gained. Bored of the contestants of the past, Tweed asks his production team to find him freaks for the new series. The contestants chosen include ambitious ruthless southern girl Sally Kendoo (Mandy Moore), encouraged and pushed by her mother (Jennifer Coolidge). When her agent Chet (Seth Meyers) realises that her devoted ex-boyfriend William (Chris Klein) has just come back from Iraq injured, he tells Sally to get back together with William in order to gain her more votes. Also chosen is show-tune-loving Omer (Sam Golzari) who is staying with his relatives in Orange County. Omer was originally sent to America from Iraq (where he failed at a terrorist training camp) to await instructions on how to further the cause of destroying America. When his comrades realise that the American President will be a guest judge at the championship round, they instruct Omer to get to that final round. They will provide him with a bomb to use on live television when he is on-stage with the President. As the competition continues, both Sally and Omer end up in the final. It is going to be a show that no one will forget.

One of the key issues in American Dreamz is ambition and the drive for fame. The contestants who enter American Dreamz all desperately want to win. This is most clearly shown in the character of Sally Kendoo (who is similar to American Idol Season Five winner Carrie Underwood, also a white southern country girl). She uses the injured and besotted William, whom she does not love, to further her chances of success, making it clear to her agent that this is all she wants. Winning American Dreamz is the most important thing in her life, and the resulting fame is the ultimate goal she has always been working towards. Whilst her behaviour is slightly exaggerated, it does not seem that far away from the behaviour of contestants on current reality TV shows. American Dreamz reflects how obsessed with fame and celebrity our society is, and how many people’s aims are material success and fame.

However, American Dreamz also shows how unfulfilling this materialistic success can be through the character of Martin Tweed. Tweed admits to Sally that he is disconnected with reality and it is clear that he hates his job. He is a very unhappy person, asking his assistants at one point if he is lovable. His character has all the material success which the other characters in the film strive for (fast car, huge house, hosting the highest rating show in America), yet he remains deeply unhappy and unfulfilled. While Tweed defines success as material, Christians define it radically differently as serving and worshipping God and eventually reaching heaven through God’s grace. They believe that living with God as the focus of life is the only way to be truly fulfilled. They believe this to be worth so much more than the material success that American Dreamz portrays which can be taken away and will not last long. Matthew 6 tells us ‘Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.’

American Dreamz also shows the power that fame has in our society. The world of American Dreamz takes the current trend for reality show celebrities a step further by portraying the stars of America Dreamz (particularly the Simon Cowell-esque Martin Tweed) as having more power than the President of the United States. Tweed (and the Chief of Staff) control the President’s appearance on American Dreamz – until the President’s earpiece falls out. American Dreamz demonstrates how powerful celebrities in our society have become and how they affect our lives. Christians, however, believe the opposite. They believe that God should have the power in our lives and that we would be happier for it. In American Dreamz, William ends up killing Martin and dying himself in a fruitless attempt to kill Sally for sleeping with Martin, and Sally takes over hosting duties for American Dreamz rather than pursuing a singing career. American Dreamz clearly punishes the greed and ambition shown by many of its characters. The Bible warns of this in 1 Timothy 6: 9 – ‘People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.’ The only lead characters who end the film unpunished are Omer, who decides not to kill the President and instead becomes a singing star on Broadway, and the President who employs his wife to become his new Chief of Staff and continues to learn more about the world.

American Dreamz’s message is messy and somewhat confusing. It agrees with the Christian critique of fame and wealth, clearly criticising the materialistic dreams of the fame-hungry. But it still allows Sally to gain mainstream success and fame (even if it is not her original goal of singing stardom), American Dreamz continues to broadcast and search for more stars and Omer achieves his dream of singing on stage. Whilst some people are clearly happy, they are missing out on so much more as they do not know God. They may have achieved success in society’s eyes but for Christians, there is much more to happiness in life that American Dreamz chooses not to explore.

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