Head of State is… okay. I laughed at the right parts; it had some clever jokes. But the very fact that it had some humorous quality to it, that it had some potential to be good, left me even more unimpressed, even more deflated in the face of its relative mediocrity. Especially when the two stars (Chris Rock and Bernie Mac) are hilarious stand-up comedians with talent, intelligence, and a fresh perspective whose first film together should have been an extravaganza of comedy rather than a few bundled together jokes.

And the film focuses on such over-used, worn-out subject as black-white humor, aspects of the old “white men can’t jump" adage permeating every single joke— or at least every remotely funny one. Rock and Mac can’t seem to escape the theme that brought them notoriety and acclamation on the stand-up stage. Unfortunately, it’s been done well (White Men Can’t Jump), it’s been done poorly (Bringin’ Down the House), point being: it’s been done.

This time, the stereotypical scenario is political powerhouses setting up the unlikely Mays Gilliam (Rock) as a presidential candidate meant to lose while making a political statement advancing the party’s interests. See, the ghettofabulous Rock will show that the Democratic party is, in fact, the party of the people, and will garner presidential hopeful Bill Arnot (James Rebhorn) votes in the next election. Nobody expects Rock to win after the original candidate died in a plane crash and smooth Republican Brian Lewis (Nick Searcy) has the vast majority of the popular vote. Overdone foreshadowing alert, overdone foreshadowing alert!

Mays will, of course, triumph in the end, somehow miraculously making massive gains in the popular vote despite numerous mishaps and obvious unsuitability. Oh, let's not forget the cutesy, cheesy, blah love story that's barely worth mentioning. Genre? Fantasy. And to add to the unrealism of it all, Mays picks brother Mitch (Mac) as his running mate.

This would-be plot calamity due to its absurdity ends as the film’s saving grace when Mitch turns out hilarious jokes one after the other, all enhanced by that telltale smile and expressive face.

His— and Mays— way of putting politics into such blunt, apt terms is refreshingly funny. Yet their success in this department is undermined by their stuck-in-a-rut theme, their focus on the tried-and-true.

Head of State was certainly entertaining and the star comedians possess undeniable charm. But the basic problem with the film is that it represents underachievement on a vast scale. Almost as if Rock and Mac somehow came down with a form of comedian senioritis.

Head of State (90 minutes, at area theaters) is rated PG-13 for language, sexuality and drug references.