"FROST/NIXON"

“Froat/Nixon,” directed by Ron Howard; starring Michael Sheen, Frank Langella, and Kevin Bacon.
A DISHONEST FILM ABOUT A DISHONEST MAN
By Gaetana Caldwell-Smith
"Frost/Nixon" is one of several films up for the 2008 Academy Award for Best Film. Its rivals include, "Milk," "Slumdog Millionaire," and "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button." Frank Langella has been nominated for Best Actor.

“Tricky Dick” is too mild an epithet to describe ex president, Richard Millhouse Nixon. In director Ron Howard’s film, “Frost/Nixon,” he and screenwriter Peter Morgan present a dishonest recreation of the 1977 series of taped interviews with ex-President Nixon, a demoralized former political heavyweight. The interviews were conducted by David Frost, who was a lightweight British television talk and variety show host. Michael Sheen (Tony Blair in “The Queen), and Frank Langella reprise their legit theatre roles in the film, which Morgan adapted from his eponymous play. At this time in his political career, Nixon was reduced to lecturing at trade conventions for a few thousand a pop. The real-life historic interviews were subsequently televised in three segments.
Howard’s film (and Morgan’s play) takes place during one of the most dynamic eras in American history where a constitutional crisis was explained away as simply a president and his chief advisors’ illegal moves. So where’s the beef? The question is: How far can a film or play go to dramatize a tumultuous historical period? In other words, based on a raft of accessible evidence, the film is a lie. Poetic license in this case was taken too far. Where the film focuses on the Watergate cover up, Nixon’s egregious crimes against America were many. Besides trying to get the goods on the Democratic Party by breaking in to its headquarters, Nixon not only severely undermined the constitution, but also executed the break in of Daniel Ellsberg’s psychiatrist, Dr. Lewis Fielding’s, office. Ellsberg had leaked the Pentagon Papers containing detailed plotting for not only the Vietnam war’s escalation, but the true number of US troops sent there. Nixon was more concerned about this discovery than that of Watergate. The power of Howard’s film, however, makes what appears boring and dull on the actual tapes (now on disc) dramatic. In the film, during the final taping, a close up of Nixon’s face reveals him as a haggard, beaten down man. Langella, though not resembling Nixon, does a superb rendering of the essence of the man, as does Sheen with his characterization of Frost.
In his final term, facing impeachment over the Watergate cover-up, Nixon became the first president in history forced to resign from office, in 1974. He announced his resignation on television with the media present, and chief aide Jack Brennan (played by Kevin Bacon) in full uniform at his side. Director Howard recreates this event, with a shot of Sheen as Frost, who had been hosting his popular TV shows in both Australia and London, watching the event on television. You can practically see the light go off in his brain.
Shortly after he resigned, Nixon suffered an attack of phlebitis and had to be rushed to the hospital where, during his recovery, he received a full pardon for any “wrongdoings” from then President Gerald Ford. Nixon retired to his Casa Pacifica (ironic name) home in San Clemente.
Frost and his producer, John Birt (Matthew MacFedyan) arrange a deal with Hollywood agent Swifty Lazar (Toby Jones, [Karl Rove in “W”]). Frost offers Nixon a half million dollars. Nixon wants more, and gets it. Nixon, a brooding, defeated man, three years after his resignation, sees the series as a way to restore his reputation and get back into the limelight. Another omission in the film is the fact that Nixon would receive twenty percent. of the profits when networks buy the tapes. Basically, the opponents saw the dollar signs of a profitable business deal. Records show that Nixon's efforts to redeem himself and pay his legal bills was a carefully planned endeavor called "The Wizard."
As for the format of the tapings, all, including Jack Brennan, agree to a “no holds barred” grilling. Frost says, “It’ll be done in four parts: Watergate, domestic policy, Vietnam, and Nixon the Man.” “As opposed to what?” Nixon snaps back, “Nixon the Horse?” The film shows Nixon as sarcastic and funny, when in real life he was a humorless, bigoted monster.
Besides saving his reputation, Nixon appears to care about the money angle. Still, Frost is stymied as no big corporate network wants his show. He goes independent and has to raise funds. He hires a team of investigative journalists like the liberal columnist Jim Reston, Jr. (Sam Rockwell). Reston thinks Frost won’t be hard enough on Nixon. He wants Nixon convicted for his authorization of the Watergate break-ins. Along with questions on wiretapping, Reston tells Frost to ask him: “How do you feel as a Quaker in annihilating an entire people?’ Of course, this never happens.
Ron Howard seamlessly intercuts archival video and film clips into his movie, including shots of the horrific, devastating “secret” bombings of Cambodia, the dead and desiccated bodies of civilians, burned and severely wounded children, and vast areas of forest, homes and buildings aflame. The tendency is to turn away. Some clips hadn’t been televised, although many of similar content were, such as shots of wounded, dead, and dying American soldiers. The latter shocked Americans into stepping up to launch hundreds of country-wide protests, involving hundreds of thousands of people, to end the protracted war.
During the initial interviews, Nixon appears relaxed. He is sly, bantering with Frost. The first three meetings do not go well for Frost. He opens with, “Why didn’t you burn the tapes? [Where he plans the break in with his cronies]” Nixon blithely runs on with an evasive convoluted answer; he is cheered by the omnipresent media when he leaves the Smith House where the interviews take place. Frost has funding problems and begins to understand that he is up against a major operator. He is into his backers for several thousand dollars. His London agent calls to tell him he’s losing his shows in Australia and London. Frost is worried that the tapes will never “see the light of day,” and realizes that he took a huge gamble. Before the final interview starts taping, Nixon throws him a curve by asking Frost if he did any “fornicating” last night. Frost reacts slightly, then when taping starts, he lays into Nixon about Vietnam and Cambodia, and shows Nixon film clips of the bombings. Nixon looks uncomfortable. Sweat breaks out on his upper lip, which up to now, he had controlled with the subtle use of a handkerchief. Later, at a Hugh Hefner party, Nixon plays the piano. Frost is talking to Pat Nixon, played by Patty McCormack as a tranquilized, well-appointed zombie, a put-upon spouse. About the interviews, she says, ’I’m glad it’s all going as planned.” The camera moves to a very depressed looking Nixon.
For his play, Morgan had invented a scene, included in the film, where, the night before the last taping, Nixon, with a drink in his hand, makes a very late night phone call to Frost. He launches into a long psychologically revealing rant, and challenges Frost to bring him down. He makes a confession that has Frost later sending Reston to research. Frost then spends the rest of the night listening to all of the Nixon tapes and making notes. Yet, as the opponents chat before the last taping, Nixon claims to have no memory of making the call
During the interview, Frost pins Nixon about his (Nixon’s) role in the obstruction of justice on the Watergate trials, accusing Nixon of colluding with Charles Colson, a Nixon crony. Frost reads from the transcript of his and Colson’s talk. Although, in reality, the tape was unknown, therefore unimportant, because a prosecutor had stated in an interview that they had more incriminating evidence against Nixon. Nixon’s famous rejoinder was, “When the President does it, it’s not illegal.” Frost then needles him to admit that he was involved in the cover-up. Nixon appears undone. Jack Brennan breaks into the room and demands the taping stopped. Everyone’s in a turmoil (Records show that Frost had it stopped because of a misread cue.) After a while, the interview is resumed and Nixon admits he let down the American people. “I made mistakes not worthy of a President.”
Howard’s film conflates the truth of what actually happened during the last interview. Frost appears to have “nailed” Nixon into confessing. He says, he “was involved in a ‘cover--up,’ as you call it.” However, evidence proves that what he really said was: “You’re wanting me to say that I participated in an illegal cover-up. No!” Screenwriter Morgan has him say, “I let them down. I let down the country. I let down the government.” As he leaves the Smith House, he appears to have aged. What felled him, Nixon says, was part media, part politics. Frost’s interviews get picked up. They are a sensation due to the power of the TV close up.
The final scene is of Frost visiting Nixon at Casa Pacifica. Nixon still does not recall the phone conversation: “What did we talk about?”he asks. “Cheeseburgers,” Frost replies..
Ron Howard and Peter Morgan obviously wanted to create a major film about an important time in American politics - - not a documentary - - that was both entertaining and would guarantee a substantial profit. So they took liberties with the truth to give us a distorted, dishonest film about a dangerous, paranoid, deluded President, who admitted only to “mistakes.” What is shameful is that roughly seventy percent of the population is too young to know about the Nixon presidency and his egregious, blatant disregard for human lives and the country.