Saturday, January 03, 2009

Frost / Nixon

In August of 1974, I had graduated from high school, and was going on summer vacation with my family before I left for college. We were spending 10 days sailing off the shores of southern New England. The first night of our trip, we met people in a cove in Narragansett Bay, rafted the boats together and settled in for an evening of cocktails and conversation. Someone had a battery powered TV on board, a special newscast came on. One by one, we all drifted over to watch. President Richard Nixon was resigning. I remember being a bit stunned. I really thought he was going to force an impeachment. For me, Richard Nixon has been one of the more fascinating political figures of my lifetime. A diplomat, a politician, a thief, a liar, a father, a husband, a manipulator. Driven by power, greed and a desire to be liked. And there he was, admitting defeat and throwing in the towel. After the many months of the Watergate trials, an early form of reality TV, he had nowhere else to go.

In the film Frost/Nixon, we get inside David Frost's pursuit of Nixon for a series of interviews about his political life. Nixon wants a positive spin, Frost and his team, want a confession about the Watergate break in and cover up. If you marveled at the acting performances in the film Doubt, wait till you see Frost/Nixon! An amazing cast gives this piece of history a passionate turn. Loved it!

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