Oliver Stone: Richard Nixon (1995) Starring Anthony Hopkins

Source:Roger Ebert– Anthony Hopkins as President Richard M. Nixon (Republican, California) 37th President of the United States.

“Oliver Stone creates empathy for this most enigmatic of American leaders. One of the year’s best films.

Oliver Stone’s “Nixon” gives us a brooding, brilliant, tortured man, sinking into the gloom of a White House under siege, haunted by the ghosts of his past. Thoughts of Hamlet, Macbeth and King Lear come to mind; here, again, is a ruler destroyed by his fatal flaws.

There’s something almost majestic about the process: As Nixon goes down in this film, there is no gloating, but a watery sigh, as of a great ship sinking.

From Roger Ebert 

“One of the best film trailers of all time, this was the original theatrical trailer for one of the greatest political dramas of all time, Oliver Stone’s 1995 classic NIXON, starring Anthony Hopkins and Joan Allen.”

Source:Fire Ice 1971– Joan Allen and Annabeth Gish.

From Fire Ice 1971

Nixon is one of my favorite movies purely for entertainment value. And I believe Anthony Hopkins did a great job of playing Richard Nixon and Joan Allen did a great job portraying Pat Nixon. But I don’t believe the movie is very accurate as far as other things movies and books that I’ve seen about the man.

I mean the movie constantly has Dick Nixon drinking some type of scotch or alcoholic beverage. And although Nixon was Irish, (ha, ha) people close to him said that he couldn’t hold his liquor. He would have maybe one drink after work and another with dinner. But wasn’t drinking throughout the day and during meetings and so-forth.

Also, the movie I believe over-portrays Dick Nixon’s negative aspects. And again if you are familiar with the man you know he’s one of the most fascinating complicated politicians whose ever lived. And a big reason for that had to do with the fact that he wasn’t just good or just bad. That he had many aspects that were good and bad that people who worked for the man who have broad respect. Like David Gergen or his second Attorney General Elliot Richardson, said that the man had some awful character flaws like not being able to trust people (to use as an example) but that he did a lot of great things as president like as they related to China and Russia.

Nixon is a very good movie from an entertainment value and as far as the aspects of Dick Nixon’s life that they covered. And was very well-written with a great cast that also included Paul Sorvino, James Woods and Ed Harris (to name a few others) but they left a lot out or didn’t cover some of the other aspects of the man’s life, like his time in Congress or as Vice President and some of his big accomplishments as president.