'The Special Relationship' isn't so special

THE MOVIE "The Special Relationship"

WHEN | WHERE Saturday night at 9 p.m. on HBO

REASON TO WATCH The latest from Peter Morgan, who wrote the screenplays for "The Queen" and "Frost / Nixon."

WHAT IT'S ABOUT The term "special relationship" has long characterized U.S.-British ties, but for the purposes of this docudrama, it describes the bond between Bill Clinton (Dennis Quaid) and former British PM Tony Blair (Michael Sheen). Clinton was well-established in the White House long before Blair got to 10 Downing St., and the new British leader looked to Clinton as wise elder.

He's deeply influenced by Clinton's pragmatic brand of politics, as outlined by one aide, who explains: "It's a hell of a lot easier to change what your party stands for than change what [voters] want." At first, Blair and his wife, Cherie (Helen McCrory), are fascinated by Bill and Hillary (Hope Davis). Says Sherie, "They're effectively running the country together [and] I think there's something quite romantic about that."

Then reality arrives: Monica Lewinsky . . . impeachment . . . Kosovo.

MY SAY If you suspect that the relationship between Clinton and Blair might not make the world's most enthralling movie, then you suspect correctly. This is a book-length subject, and even then . . . well, to each his own. In fact, there is no "story" here, or certainly not the compact narrative that made Morgan's "The Queen" and "Frost / Nixon" such winners. (Sheen played Blair in the former and David Frost in the latter.)

The best you can say about Morgan's efforts here are that they are dutiful; dialogue is often spoken in carefully wrought blocks of text, and always revolve around great matters of state. Even when the guys are in the kitchen and Bill's robbing the fridge, political wisdom is dispensed as the ham sandwich is consumed.

BOTTOM LINE As dull as "The Special Relationship" is, it could have been worse. For example, Morgan could have pulled an Oliver Stone, and based some material on the flimsiest or kookiest of sources. Sure, that might have been irresponsible, but at least viewers would have stayed awake until the end.

GRADE C-