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This is that time of the year when biopic movies seem to have the potential of Oscar written all over it.
Director Ron Howard scored big time with his 2001 movie, “A Beautiful Mind” winning in the Best Director, Best Film and Best Actress (Jennifer Connolly) category.
And now Howard is back making a biopic movie based on a stage production which was based on actual events that occurred over thirty years ago.
When President Richard Nixon resigned fro office in disgrace because of the Watergate scandal in 1974 the country was in shock. I mean, here’s a man who just two years earlier had won the largest re-election for the presidency ever.
The American people wanted an explanation as to why Nixon abused his power but he wasn’t speaking about it to anybody. What’s so ironic is that earlier this week yet another 200 hours of never before heard audiotapes were made available to the public (now totaling 2,200 hours of tape) revealing a very cocky man who believed he truly was above the law.
The media hounded the former president for exclusive interviews and when Nixon finally agreed to sit down for a chat he did so receiving $600,000. And who conducted the interview and put up the cash? A British TV talk show host named David Frost (now Sir David Frost).
He also paid a dear price too because back then it wasn’t legitimate for journalists to pay to have their subjects interviewed.
Frost came under a lot of fire and ridicule from other journalists because he really wasn’t known for interviewing political figures but more celebrity types that didn’t require firing off the hardball questions.
However Frost was determined to get the story no matter what the cost. Playing David Frost is Michael Sheen (from “The Queen”) who doesn’t look much like Frost but sure captures his mannerisms well.
The actor though who really captures the essence of the former president though is veteran actor Frank Langella. Again, he may not look like Nixon but he nails the part with his whole body and speech style.
In an odd way both men needed each other during this point in time because Frost’s career was on the wane while Nixon could use this format as a way for defending his actions in addition to getting paid an enormous amount of money in the process.
Contracts were drawn up for the interviews to take place for four days of filming. Watch for Kevin Bacon playing Nixon’s assistant Jack Brennan. I almost didn’t recognize him.
Other notables to pay attention to are actors Oliver Platt and especially Sam Rockwell as jaded journalist James Reston Jr. While not in too many scenes they both offer up a lot of substance considering the time they had.
It would be easy to say once again that history does in fact repeat itself but it’s true.
After listening to Nixon during these interviews it wasn’t too far of a stretch of how things have been going in the current, outgoing administration.
It certainly revealed that anyone in power can be seduced into thinking that they can do no wrong. One example in the movie is a heated exchange between Frost and the former when Nixon shouts that, “When the president does it, it’s not illegal.” Wow that was eerie to hear.
The movie is based on the very successful stage play of the same name written by Peter Morgan. Having Ron Howard at the helm was a wise move because he was able to take basically the one dimensional look from a live production and give the movie a multi-dimensional feel by offering up documentary footage and giving the viewer a prelude to the interviews even if the set up was a bit long.
Movies released at this time late in the year based on real subjects make for a good chance at Oscar and even though it is a bit early I see Langella getting a nomination along with Sean Penn in the critically acclaimed movie, “Milk.” More on that movie later.
“Frost/Nixon” is rated R for some language and clocks in at 122 minutes.
Director Ron Howard scored big time with his 2001 movie, “A Beautiful Mind” winning in the Best Director, Best Film and Best Actress (Jennifer Connolly) category.
And now Howard is back making a biopic movie based on a stage production which was based on actual events that occurred over thirty years ago.
When President Richard Nixon resigned fro office in disgrace because of the Watergate scandal in 1974 the country was in shock. I mean, here’s a man who just two years earlier had won the largest re-election for the presidency ever.
The American people wanted an explanation as to why Nixon abused his power but he wasn’t speaking about it to anybody. What’s so ironic is that earlier this week yet another 200 hours of never before heard audiotapes were made available to the public (now totaling 2,200 hours of tape) revealing a very cocky man who believed he truly was above the law.
The media hounded the former president for exclusive interviews and when Nixon finally agreed to sit down for a chat he did so receiving $600,000. And who conducted the interview and put up the cash? A British TV talk show host named David Frost (now Sir David Frost).
He also paid a dear price too because back then it wasn’t legitimate for journalists to pay to have their subjects interviewed.
Frost came under a lot of fire and ridicule from other journalists because he really wasn’t known for interviewing political figures but more celebrity types that didn’t require firing off the hardball questions.
However Frost was determined to get the story no matter what the cost. Playing David Frost is Michael Sheen (from “The Queen”) who doesn’t look much like Frost but sure captures his mannerisms well.
The actor though who really captures the essence of the former president though is veteran actor Frank Langella. Again, he may not look like Nixon but he nails the part with his whole body and speech style.
In an odd way both men needed each other during this point in time because Frost’s career was on the wane while Nixon could use this format as a way for defending his actions in addition to getting paid an enormous amount of money in the process.
Contracts were drawn up for the interviews to take place for four days of filming. Watch for Kevin Bacon playing Nixon’s assistant Jack Brennan. I almost didn’t recognize him.
Other notables to pay attention to are actors Oliver Platt and especially Sam Rockwell as jaded journalist James Reston Jr. While not in too many scenes they both offer up a lot of substance considering the time they had.
It would be easy to say once again that history does in fact repeat itself but it’s true.
After listening to Nixon during these interviews it wasn’t too far of a stretch of how things have been going in the current, outgoing administration.
It certainly revealed that anyone in power can be seduced into thinking that they can do no wrong. One example in the movie is a heated exchange between Frost and the former when Nixon shouts that, “When the president does it, it’s not illegal.” Wow that was eerie to hear.
The movie is based on the very successful stage play of the same name written by Peter Morgan. Having Ron Howard at the helm was a wise move because he was able to take basically the one dimensional look from a live production and give the movie a multi-dimensional feel by offering up documentary footage and giving the viewer a prelude to the interviews even if the set up was a bit long.
Movies released at this time late in the year based on real subjects make for a good chance at Oscar and even though it is a bit early I see Langella getting a nomination along with Sean Penn in the critically acclaimed movie, “Milk.” More on that movie later.
“Frost/Nixon” is rated R for some language and clocks in at 122 minutes.
