When Barack Met Michelle

It was mostly curiosity that drove me to see the film "Southside With You."

It's rare to see a biopic about people who are not only still alive, but still in prominence. Oliver Stone's "W.", released in the final months of the George W. Bush administration, is another example. But Richard Tanne's "Southside" is much less ambitious, seeking not to chronicle the lives of President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Robinson Obama, or even their relationship, but the events of the single night in 1989 when they hit it off.

Some critics have called the film somewhat awkward, in that it shows a side of America's most prominent couple we don't expect to see: flirting, walking in the park, and eventually (spoiler alert) making out. And then there is the spectacle of them walking down the street with no security detail, never gathering a crowd or even a look from passersby who will not know their names for another 15 years.

This is a tribute to the talents of actors Parker Sawyers and Tika Sumpter, who lend great authenticity to the roles, and Tanne's casting. The story and pace, however, at times come up a bit short. Movies about a single date ("Blind Date," "Date Night") are usually comedies. This has its light moments, as the audience is in on the joke: Michelle has her doubts about this guy, who is poised to be the leader of the free world. And there is chemistry between the actors. But perhaps like the real deal, Michelle seems to go back and forth about whether she likes this guy, even after the supposedly transitional moments.

It's precisely because we get to tag along and listen to the improvised dialog, but know what we know that "Southside" can be so engaging, whereas a similar story about two ordinary people, or promising people with an unclear future would fall flat. When Barack brings his law firm advisor (she insists it is not a date) to a Southside community meeting where he's well known for his activism, and stirs up the crowd with his prompt to gain trust through dialog with city officials and stand firm for their interests, we have our first glimpse of the future commander-in-chief. With sharp intellect and acute public spirit, there seems to be only one thing missing in the life of this man who had an unstable childhood marred by an absent father, mixed feelings of belonging and numerous changes in venue.

And by the time he is sharing ice cream with Michelle leading up to the fateful kiss, we know he has found it.

Despite the lack of dramatic tension in this story, it works because it is at heart a tale of two people fortunate enough to have found life partners who bring out their full potential in each other, and early in life.
Besides curiosity, maybe I was drawn to "Southside" because I was lucky enough to have the same, and pray that my three children will be just as fortunate.