They’re not even old enough to vote, but Betsy Jobs (Kirsten Dunst) and Arlene Lorenzo (Michelle Williams) find themselves amid a political scandal in Dick (1999).
On their way to mail a letter that will enter them into a contest to win a date with ‘70s teen idol Bobby Sherman, the blonde high scholars accidentally witness Watergate bugging, inadvertently becoming the infamous Deep Throat. The next day, the girls wander off during a class trip to the White House and wind up hired, by President Nixon himself (who’s covering his ass, of course), as “official White House dog walkers” and “Presidential youth advisors.” They even bake “special” brownies for Dick to get him to call the troops home from the Vietnam War.
But before long, the girls learn that Betsy’s apartment is tapped and Arlene’s mother’s new boyfriend is an undercover agent, so they take their secrets to The Washington Post, and Nixon is forced to resign. While they each have their own style during the movie— Arlene wears nerdy glasses, flower power frocks, and a peace sign pendant; Betsy bares her midriff (even with high-waisted pants) and often tops off her look with a patchwork slouchy hat— the final scene sees the two in halter tops and bell bottoms fashioned from an american flag, waving a banner that reads YOU SUCK, DICK!
The only swing vote on this Presidential look: PVC or polyester?
-- words from our november 2008 issue