After eating North America's best type of food, Mexican, Chan and I headed over to the IFC Waverly to check out the new Al Franken movie. I like seeing movies that haven't opened in other cities yet. Don't you?

Franken himself was to be at the theater. I found that out yesterday and immediately bought tickets online. I've loved Franken since I saw him with that huge satellite dish strapped to his back on Weekend Update.

Thursday night, aka New York's Friday night, in the Village, late summer. Good stuff. We got there before anyone else, so we were the official spokespeople of the ticket holders' line. "What line is this?" "Ticket holders." "For what?" "Franken." "Nice." Over and over again. Chan read the Onion while I read it over his shoulder.

We went in to the intimate theater and sat in the middle-middle. Then the movie started, without previews. Boo-urns.

The title is Al Franken: God Spoke. That refers to a quick skit in which God tells Al what to call his last book. I would've come up with a better title myself. That's my only complaint.

The film follows Franken through the 2004 presidential election, and documents the launching of the Air America Radio Network. When I lived in CT, I listened to Al's show (formerly called The O'Franken Factor) on there, but I don't listen to much radio now that I don't regularly drive a car. But I loved the show. I used to talk about it here. He basically, as he said tonight, uses what right-wing hosts say against them.

There's lots of good anti-Fox News, anti-O'Reilly, anti-Coulter, and anti-Hannity stuff in this film. Great footage of Al at the Republican Convention, as well as him at a Newsweek Party, which was full of Republicans. I love he goes right at them, being personable with them, but not being afraid to call them out on their lies right to their faces.

It was also cool that they showed Al and the Air America crew right before the election, talking about how to go about gloating the next day after Kerry won.

Very funny movie. If you're a liberal like me, you're gonna like it. Unless you're Brian, who I believe doesn't like Franken. So, basically, if you like Al, you'll love this. If you're a liberal, you'll get a kick out of the anti-Republican stuff. If you're a conservative, you probably won't go, but all I can say is, if you do, you might get an idea of what Al's trying to accomplish, and what a great sense of humor he has. Seems like half the movie is him cracking up.

Oh, and there's also some classic SNL footage. Stuff that never made the "Best Of" shows. That dude had some great hair in the 70s.

As the closing credits rolled, Al came out for a Q & A. As we stood and clapped for him--lots of audience reaction during the movie, by the way, like booing every time Bush was shown. Love the NYC liberal crowd. If only the concert crowds here were that cool--he was standing there following credits up the screen with his hands like a schoolboy. We kept the ovation going as the lights went up. He took questions. We learned about a scene that was cut out due to the Connecticut Board of Something or Other not allowing it to be in the movie. Al debated Ann Coulter in Connecticut. Some of this was shown, but they had to cut out Ann saying she'd most want to be Joe McCarthy if she could be anyone in history. Besides him, she'd be FDR, so she could undo the New Deal. Franken came back by saying, "Well, then I guess I'd be Hitler. Then I would've taken away the holocaust. But kept the Volkswagen!" Then the moderator called Paul Wellstone--Al's good friend and fellow Minnesotan who died in a plane crash--inconsequential. So Al thinks the guy paid somebody to keep that out of the film, since Al rightfully got pissed.

Al also might run for office in Minnesota in '08, and some questions were about that. "Do you think people might not take you seriously?" "I hadn't thought of that...," Franken deadpanned. He also said "I'd be the only New York Jew from Minnesota in the race."

One dude asked if Al thought it would be better for Dems to have a strong showing but barely lose the November elections so the right will still be "held accountable" for the next two years. Al passionately explained how the sooner the Dems win, the better. If they get control of the House/Senate, that means subpoena power. He talked about how all these people with blood on their hands should have to face the proverbial music in Congress.

On our way out, Al was at the door, and he shook everyone's hand. That was cool. I totally just shook Al Franken's hand. Sweet. Wow, I just found out after I wrote that line that Franken will be on Conan in a few minutes. More Franken for me.