The daughter of the U.S. President heads off to college where she falls for a graduate student with a secret.
Samantha Mackenzie loves and supports her parents, US President John Mackenzie and First Lady Melanie Mackenzie, and enjoys the privileges that she has received being the only daughter of the President, but sometimes she wants to be what she considers "normal" which means not having her life scrutinized by the world 24/7. She made the decision to go away to college in California at Redmond University in large part to get away from life at the White House and hopefully assert some independence, this first stint at college coinciding with President Mackenzie's reelection bid for a second term in the White House. As such, he knows that his opponents will exploit whatever they can, including placing even more scrutiny on the family, and having even more threats than usual against them meaning his want for more security. So Sam's college experience is less than normal, being followed by a very visible team of Secret Service agents, who are trained to notice the smallest things that may be of threat to her. This highly visible team makes it difficult for Sam to make friends, with her eventual dorm roommate, Mia Thompson, an initially reluctant one. As Sam negotiates with her parents for more freedom than she is allowed, she gets a mostly cooperative accomplice in Mia in exerting that freedom regardless of her parents. Sam ends up finding another simpatico classmate in the form of James Lansome, who she eventually learns is also her resident advisor. In James helping her find those moments of independence, she falls for him and he with her. James, however, is keeping his own secrets which may further negatively affect Sam's view of her life, of her college experience and of James himself if she were to discover those secrets, which is more and more likely the closer the election date.—Huggo
The daughter of the President of the United States goes off to college after insisting that she be able to enjoy her school years without the omnipresence of the Secret Service. The government agrees to her demands but assigns a young agent to go undercover as a student in order to keep an eye on her. The first daughter and the agent fall in love, until she learns his true identity.—Sujit R. Varma
Samantha MacKenzie (Katie Holmes) is the only child of United States president John MacKenzie (Michael Keaton). Because of her father's political career (he was a Governor first and then elected President), she has been in the public eye her entire life and spent most of her high school years in the White House. She never had any close friends, and she was always surrounded by the secret service agents.Having to deal with lack of privacy and public scrutiny for the most ridiculous things (like the outfits she wears and how fashionable her choices are), Sam has had a sheltered existence, and her father has trouble letting her have more freedom yet is too busy to spend time with her. Though her mother Melanie (Margaret Colin) is supportive, she still stands by her husband's decisions, leaving Sam feeling restricted from having a normal life.
Accompanied by Secret Service agents everywhere she goes, and with her father running for re-election, Sam finally believes she has the chance to break out of her cocoon when she is given the opportunity to attend college in California. Even though Sam feels she can finally live her life at college, she is always surrounded by secret service agents, who try to be hidden and out of sight, but follow her every move.
At school, Sam ends up sharing a dorm room with boy-crazed Mia Thompson (Amerie), who is hesitant at first to room with the first daughter, but eventually warms to Sam. The college dean throws a huge welcoming party for Sam, inviting the entire college teaching staff. It is clear that Sam would be anything but "normal" at college. Nobody would sit next to her in class and stare at her as if she came from another planet.After Sam's Secret Service agents tackle a student brandishing a water gun at a pool party and hastily evacuate Sam from the premises, she insists that her detail be reduced to just two agents Bock (Michael Milhoan) and (Dylan Dwayne Adway), which her father begrudgingly agrees to (upon coaxing from his secretary Liz (Lela Rochon)).Sam's call sign in secret service is "Lucky Charm".
As it is election seasons, the college also has political rallies, where a section of students tries to goad Sam into a debate on her father's economic policies. Sam ignores the baits and the taunts. The Anti-Mackenzie campaign is really strong on campus.Every action of Sam on campus is played up by an ever-present media and impacts John's poll numbers.
Settling into some semblance of normalcy, Sam meets and becomes interested in fellow student James Lansome (Marc Blucas), her resident advisor (RA). James helps her avoid paparazzi, escape her security team, and experience life as a normal girl. They eat pizza, roam the streets and spend time together. James introduces Sam to chocolate covered popcorn at the movies and she is enthralled. She is finally living her life for the first time.They discuss their deepest thoughts and wishes, and Sam tells him that although she is never alone, she is often lonely.
Mia starts getting a little angry when she finds that Sam is the one who gets all the attention everywhere she goes and relegates Mia to runner up. Even guys that she is interested in, come close to her to pay homage to Sam. Sam and Mia have a big fight and Sam says that Mia is unfairly blaming her for all the ills in her life. Sam says that Mia allows herself to be used by others regardless of whether she is around and tells to take responsibility for her actions.
Sam confides in James that she yearns for her privacy and doesn't want her entire to be picked out by others on her behalf.Sam accidentally reveals to James that she was looking for some action with him. James is stunned and says that as RA, it is forbidden, plus he can't date the first daughter.Sam says she always wanted to get in an old Volkswagen and drive herself off to college, with no babysitters or parents. James takes her to a carnival and makes her feel herself. They eventually end up kissing.
As a thanks to James and Mia for their tolerance of her complicated world, Sam flies them home to D.C. to attend a ball, with the dresses delivered to her personally by Vera Wang. James and Sam end up dancing together at the ball. Outside the ball, a disruptive protest causes Sam's security team to evacuate her again, when she discovers that James is actually an agent and has been protecting her all along.
Heartbroken and betrayed, Sam tries to readjust to college life, but an attempt to make James jealous only results in her drunken photo splashed across tabloid articles. She returns home to help her father on the last stretch of his campaign, while James is disciplined for failure to act in a manner becoming of an agent (he punched a guy who was touching Sam while she was on the counter, dancing and stripping).
Sam asks her father to make sure James's career is not ruined by their romance, to which he agrees. She also actively shares her opinion on policy matters and asks her dad to treat her like a grown up. The President wins re-election and dances with Sam at his inauguration ball, referencing something she told him in his speech and acknowledging that she is now a grown woman and worthy of his respect.
Sam is surprised and pleased to see that James is in attendance at the ball, having been reassigned to the presidential detail. They dance, and he gives her keys to an old Volkswagen (her dream car) and encourages her to go "break some rules."The film ends with Sam driving off in her car heading back to college and the narrator telling us that she will be back in the Spring and will reunite with James.
