by Dan Cohen
Frost/Nixon is first of all, stirring entertainment, provided you come to it with some knowledge of the period. I expected the predictable, but quickly found myself delighted by its multifaceted approach. The story and its many characters are revealed with intelligence, wit, and that most important of dramatic virtues, suspense.
Director Ron Howard, screenwriter/playwright Peter Morgan, and an outstanding cast have delivered two solid hours of high end drama. By adults and for adults. And they do it with an emphasis on complexity.
The movie, based on a play I did not see, begins with a whirlwind review of the events leading to Richard Nixon’s resignation in the middle of his second term. The bullet points will suffice for those who lived through the period, or studied it. Others may find it an overload, given the enormity of what occurred in this twilight of the Vietnam era. Still, the movie does an admirable job of sketching Nixon’s rapid demise, after he was linked to a bungled break in of Democratic headquarters located in a Washington hotel. The most important things to know; he never admitted guilt or granted interviews.
David Frost, who first came to our attention on a satirical TV show called “That Was the Week That Was,” (to some extent the precursor of “Saturday Night Live.”) was Nixon’s unlikely interviewer/opponent. Frost made his name in England, anchoring a show of the same name. He went on to enormous success helming a talk show that largely focused on entertainers. After that ran its course, (several years,) he held forth on Australian TV. In the movie’s view, chasing Nixon was the plum of his comeback plan.
The movie, somewhat miraculously, deals with Frost’s problem getting the interview, financing it, and then facing one of the most enigmatic characters in modern history. But just as miraculously, it draws a sturdy portrait of the vilified and psychologically wounded Nixon without debasing or simplifying him.
This movie is a breathless high wire act, both intellectual and emotional. It’s rooted in a strong screenplay, but director Ron Howard shows unusual tact in keeping the film moving and open minded. It avoids the smug or pretentious, revealing both men for their strengths and weaknesses. Invariably, more questions are asked than answered.
As their champions prepare for battle both Nixon’s and Frost’s people understand full well what’s at stake. Nixon was getting a public forum, through an entertainer he considered a lightweight, and yet someone with similar roots. Frost hungered for respect, and at least by the movie’s accounting, risked most of his own money trying to get it.
Kevin Bacon, Oliver Platt, Rebecca Hall, Sam Rockwell, Toby Jones and others tackle meaty supporting parts that play like quiet thunder. How much of the behind the scenes wrangling was made up, I can’t say, although the end results of the multi hour interview are as unquestionable as they were in 1977.
At first Frank Langella’s Nixon appears a skillful mimicry, but as the story becomes richer he reaches unexpected depths. The Academy will take note. Michael Sheen, a distinguished theater actor, little known here, gives us Frost simultaneously fearful and determined.
I’ll equivocate on one point; while I found “Frost Nixon” a constant stimulation it’s entire 2 hour running time, it will probably fail those uninterested in our recent past or the current Presidential flaps. For them, there’s always “Transporter 3.”
