Langella thaws Nixon in docudrama
By Bruce R. Millerbmiller@siouxcityjournal.com | Posted: Friday, December 12, 2008
British talk show host David Frost was a journalism lightweight in the '70s.
Known for celebrity interviews (and a Playboy-like personal life), he hardly seemed the guy to challenge Richard Nixon and give him the trial he never had.
Yet Frost doggedly pursued the idea and emerged with a series of interviews that stand as the former president's definitive word on things like Watergate.
In "Frost/Nixon," Oscar winner Ron Howard peels back the curtain and shows what happened before they even aired.
The negotiations were filled with caveats; the support for such a project was hardly overwhelming. Frost, in fact, had to beg for every production dime he could find. But if the interviews went right, he knew they could be historic.
Howard takes a documentary-like approach to the subject, letting extraneous characters flesh out the story. James Reston Jr. (Sam Rockwell) and Bob Zelnick (Oliver Platt) were certain Frost was going to screw it up. They served as his tutors, devising the questions that could make Nixon squirm. Jack Brennan (Kevin Bacon), meanwhile, was determined to protect Nixon at every turn. The two sides butted heads more than once, then sat back while Frost (Michael Sheen) and Nixon (Frank Langella) created their own brand of history.
Because the interviews aren't viewed as key to understanding Watergate, they're often a blip on the Nixon radar. Still, as drama they're extremely compelling. Langella (who played the role on Broadway) presents the former president in Shakespearean terms. He's a defeated man who wants the ounce of understanding he never believed he got.
Sheen's Frost, meanwhile, is the '70s equivalent of Pat O'Brien. He's nervous throughout but, ultimately, victorious.
Howard gets the costumes and makeup right -- these look like characters from the era -- but he cheats on set pieces. The Beverly Hilton Hotel, for example, sports a 2008 look, not a 1978 one.
Diane Sawyer (who was a Nixon aide back then) is nothing more than set dressing. And Swifty Lazar isn't the super-agent portrayed in magazines. He's just a little man with a big hand out.
"Frost/Nixon" works well on screen, but you can see where it was better on stage. There, lighting could highlight situations, sound could underscore statements. On film, it's very "Good Night and Good Luck."
The transition isn't a seamless one (at times you wonder, "Who cares?") but it does preserve that electric performance by Langella.
Using poor posture and a hangdog look, he captures the former president's essence. When he speaks, he brings it into the room. Clearly, he's a frontrunner for Best Actor. But it's not the definitive Nixon performance.
Instead, it's a very good one that provides the kind of understanding even he couldn't.
Rated R, "Frost/Nixon" features profanity.
On a scale of four stars, "Frost/Nixon" gets:
3 stars
Known for celebrity interviews (and a Playboy-like personal life), he hardly seemed the guy to challenge Richard Nixon and give him the trial he never had.
Yet Frost doggedly pursued the idea and emerged with a series of interviews that stand as the former president's definitive word on things like Watergate.
In "Frost/Nixon," Oscar winner Ron Howard peels back the curtain and shows what happened before they even aired.
The negotiations were filled with caveats; the support for such a project was hardly overwhelming. Frost, in fact, had to beg for every production dime he could find. But if the interviews went right, he knew they could be historic.
Howard takes a documentary-like approach to the subject, letting extraneous characters flesh out the story. James Reston Jr. (Sam Rockwell) and Bob Zelnick (Oliver Platt) were certain Frost was going to screw it up. They served as his tutors, devising the questions that could make Nixon squirm. Jack Brennan (Kevin Bacon), meanwhile, was determined to protect Nixon at every turn. The two sides butted heads more than once, then sat back while Frost (Michael Sheen) and Nixon (Frank Langella) created their own brand of history.
Because the interviews aren't viewed as key to understanding Watergate, they're often a blip on the Nixon radar. Still, as drama they're extremely compelling. Langella (who played the role on Broadway) presents the former president in Shakespearean terms. He's a defeated man who wants the ounce of understanding he never believed he got.
Sheen's Frost, meanwhile, is the '70s equivalent of Pat O'Brien. He's nervous throughout but, ultimately, victorious.
Howard gets the costumes and makeup right -- these look like characters from the era -- but he cheats on set pieces. The Beverly Hilton Hotel, for example, sports a 2008 look, not a 1978 one.
Diane Sawyer (who was a Nixon aide back then) is nothing more than set dressing. And Swifty Lazar isn't the super-agent portrayed in magazines. He's just a little man with a big hand out.
"Frost/Nixon" works well on screen, but you can see where it was better on stage. There, lighting could highlight situations, sound could underscore statements. On film, it's very "Good Night and Good Luck."
The transition isn't a seamless one (at times you wonder, "Who cares?") but it does preserve that electric performance by Langella.
Using poor posture and a hangdog look, he captures the former president's essence. When he speaks, he brings it into the room. Clearly, he's a frontrunner for Best Actor. But it's not the definitive Nixon performance.
Instead, it's a very good one that provides the kind of understanding even he couldn't.
Rated R, "Frost/Nixon" features profanity.
On a scale of four stars, "Frost/Nixon" gets:
3 stars
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