Frost/Nixon Better On Silver Screen
Frost/Nixon Better On Silver ScreenJust when I thought it was not possible for a film to be better than its stage precursor, along comes Ron Howard's enthralling big screen adaptation of Peter Morgan’s play Frost/Nixon.
Please don't get me wrong. Nothing can match seeing Frank Langella as U.S. President Richard Nixon duke it out with Michael Sheen as British television talk show host/gadfly/womanizer David Frost live on stage. Both were superb, and Langella was completely deserving of the Tony Award he received for his portrayal of our disgraced president.
But seeing these two exceptional actors again, now with a completely fleshed out and contextualized story line -- compliments of Morgan himself -- now ensures that Langella and Sheen's stellar performances are matched by the material itself.
Yes, I still have an issue with the ficticious middle-of-the-night telephone call that plays such a pivotal role in this story, especially since most casual observers will believe it to be fact. But that alone should not stop anyone, including students of history, from seeing the film. Or the North American touring stage production, for that matter.
On that note, I'll be taking in one of the early legs of the tour, just so I can compare the two versions of Frost/Nixon once more.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Labels: Broadway, David Frost, Film, Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon, Michael Sheen, Peter Morgan, Richard Nixon, Ron Howard, Touring Production
posted by Steve On Broadway (SOB) @ Monday, December 29, 2008
2 Comments:
I think it was a great movie, and for someone who knew absolutely nothing about the Watergate scandal or really, anything about America at the time (I'm a 16 year old Australian) I found it pretty easy to follow. The acting was incredible.
I agree with you, particularly on the extraordinary acting. But just remember that not everything happened exactly as portrayed. Here's a list of the grievances.
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