Frost/Nixon [Blu-ray]

Frost/Nixon [Blu-ray]
by Ron Howard

Frost/Nixon [Blu-ray]

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Actor: Frank Langella, Kevin Bacon, Matthew Macfadyen, Michael Sheen, Sam Rockwell
Director: Ron Howard
Brand: NBC Universal
Producer: Brian Grazer
Producer: David Bernardi
Producer: Debra Hayward
Producer: Eric Fellner
Producer: Karen Kehela Sherwood
Producer: Kathleen McGill
Writer: Peter Morgan
Blu-ray: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language); French (Dubbed); Spanish (Dubbed)
Format: AC-3, Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 2.35:1
Running Time: 122 minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: 2009-04-21
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Universal Studios
Product features:

Condition: New
Format: Blu-ray
AC-3; Color; Dolby; DTS Surround Sound; Dubbed; Subtitled; Widescreen

Blu-ray Reviews of Frost/Nixon [Blu-ray]

Blu-ray Review: Contenders fighting on your TV done right
Summary: 5 Stars

Ron Howard, in a strange way, is kind of a hit-or-miss director in that he rarely makes an outright bad movie but some of them are...well they work but not as successfully as others. For every Grinch That Stole Christmas or the Da Vinci Code and to be honest, I didn't care for Cinderella Man, at times he can fire with all cylinders with Apollo 13, Splash and the underrated Ransom. With Frost/Nixon sandwiched inbetween the the Da Vinci Code and its followup Angels and Demons, I always wonder why he doesn't make more of these kind.

After the Watergate scandal in which President Nixon resigns from presidency, all of America want is an apology and an admission of wrongdoing. David Frost, a successful talk show host with shows in England and Australia, has his eye on interviews with Nixon, showing a full reveal of his time in office and any mistakes. This of course would help him gain notoreity and fame and being somewhat of a playboy and friendly man, how can he not resist the spotlight? Nixon sees it as a chance to redeem himself and at least let people see his side and try to make himself more favorable to the media and the country. What follows are a series of interviews where they both have a war of words and fight for the victory.

It's hard not to see the boxing parellels in the film. From the title, made to look like a marquee matchup headline to Nixon running in place, obviously meant to mirror a boxer preparing himself for the big fight. Even Kevin Bacon, who plays Nixon's advisor, makes a boxing analogy. But like a good match, it's quite compelling and in a similar way to Apollo 13, just as exciting even when we know the outcome. The actual interviews don't come immediately but there's a nice buildup, the bold question right up front only to fall flat on its face when it gets rebounded. The highs and lows of a match are all right here until the underdog gets that one blow that sends the opponent reeling. Heh, I felt Ron Howard does a better job with this interview-as-boxing-match film than he did with Cinderella Man, an actual boxing movie.

Part of it comes from the 2 main actors. One can make Michael Sheen's performance the more flashier since he always seems to smile, quite big I might add, and there's not a lot of low moments until one moment in the film when he realizes the full weight of his idea. But he does grow over the course of the interviews where he gets more confident. Though the major highlight is Frank Langella who is not only sounding like the man but seems to be Nixon better than Nixon. When the big victory is made when Nixon makes a reveal that even gets Frost ashock, Langella still manages to have a sensitivity and almost a sympathetic quality. Everyone else is quite good and welcome in their roles though they don't have the big arcs the other two get.

I'd certainly rank the film as one of Howard's better films yet (I hate those quotes on case covers) and I'm hoping the film as a bit more of a staying power. A Beautiful Mind was a film I liked though didn't love and certainly wouldn't say Best Picture deserving but since I hadn't seen it in awhile I can't say as to how I'll view it tomorrow or 2 years from now. Frost/Nixon, a compelling work and actor showcase, can potentially be one of those films where it works for a long time or it works but then it just kind of...fades. But I will say that the film is definately worth a look.

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Description of Frost/Nixon [Blu-ray]

From Academy Award-winning director Ron Howard comes the electrifying, untold story behind one of the most unforgettable moments in history. When disgraced President Richard Nixon agreed to an interview with jet-setting television personality, David Frost, he thought he?d found the key to saving his tarnished legacy. But, with a name to make and a reputation to overcome, Frost became one of Nixon?s most formidable adversaries and engaged the leader in a charged battle of wits that changed the face of politics forever. Featuring brilliant portrayals by Frank Langella and Michael Sheen, Frost/Nixon is the fascinating and suspenseful story of truth, accountability, secrets and lies.

Sounds like a good match: a historical drama from the author of The Queen, but with an American subject in the generational wheelhouse of director Ron Howard. And so Peter Morgan's Tony-winning play morphs into a Hollywood movie under the wing of the Apollo 13 guy. Morgan's subject is a curious moment of post-Watergate shakeout: British TV host David Frost's long-form interviews with ex-President Richard Nixon, conducted in 1977. It was a big ratings success at the time, justifying the somewhat controversial decision to cut an enormous check for Nixon's services. The movie adds a mockumentary note to the otherwise straightforward style, having direct-to-camera addresses from various aides to Frost and Nixon (played by the likes of Oliver Platt, Sam Rockwell, and Kevin Bacon); these basically tell us things we already glean from the rest of the movie, adding unnecessary melodrama and upping the stakes. In this curious scheme, the success of Frost's career, which could bellyflop if he doesn't get something worthwhile out of the cagey, long-winded Nixon, is given somewhat more weight than the actual revelations of the interviews. Even with these questionable storytelling decisions, there's still the spectacle of two actors going at it hammer and tongs, and on that level the movie offers some heat. Michael Sheen, who played Tony Blair not only in The Queen but also in another Morgan-scripted project, The Deal, is adept at catching David Frost's blow-dried charm, as well as the determination beneath it. Frank Langella's physical performance as Nixon is superb, and he certainly can be a commanding actor, though veteran Nixon-watchers might find that he misses a certain depth of self-pity in the man. Both actors were retained from the original stage production, a rare thing in Hollywood--and probably Howard's best decision of the project. --Robert Horton

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