In 2007, I was fortunate to see Frank Langella and Michael Sheen in FROST/NIXON on Broadway. It was a riveting night of theater on every level, with two superb actors at the peak of their game. The following year, writer Peter Morgan (The Queen) adapted his stage play for the screen and Ron Howard (The DaVinci Code, Far and Away) took the reins as Director.
They've all done a superb job of recreating the stage experience, but expanding the canvas and spinning the pace of the story up into a political thriller.
Watergate has ravaged the Nixon presidency and he's left the White House, hunkering down in his San Clemente home with a lot of resentment.
Frank Langella (Dracula, The Trial of the Chicago Seven) embodies Nixon's persona, his stature, his slightly stooped and often perturbed attitude. He finds himself wanting to tell his version of events in Washington DC with his legacy at stake. Langella won a Tony for his portrayal of the President on stage and was nominated here for a Best Actor Oscar.
Meanwhile, David Frost is living a playboy life in London, pitching softball celebrity interviews and jetting around Europe with beautiful women on his arm. But he's longing for a chance to prove that he's more than just a puff piece platform.
Michael Sheen (The Queen, Prodigal Son, Tron:Legacy) is excellent as Frost. He's a man having a hell of a good time, but harboring a deep desire to be taken seriously.
In 1977, three years after Nixon boarded that helicopter and offered one last peace sign from its step, Frost proposes a series of five prime time interviews with Nixon. With a $600,000 fee, Nixon thinks that he's grabbed the perfect platform against a soft opponent. He'll be able to shape the reflection of history as desired, knowing that Frost is used to lightweight movie stars and pop culture icons.
Even Frost's team doubts that their man is up for the task. At every turn, Frost seems to shy away from the next logical, tough and probing question.
Can Frost surprise everyone?
It's a suspenseful, intelligent road across the five nightly interviews, with Sheen/Langella, Frost/Nixon punching each other with dialogue and "gotcha" moments.
Howard does a superb job telling the story and Hans Zimmer's music score is a hell of an assist around every turn.
The supporting cast is excellent. Sam Rockwell as James Reston, Kevin Bacon as Jack Brenna, Oliver Platt as Bob Zelnick, Toby Jones as Swifty Lazar, and Matthew McFayden as John Birt are all legendary.
I remember when the actual interviews aired on TV in 1977. I was a teen, but the world was glued to it. 45 million people tuned for night one, still a record for a political interview five decades later.
Superbly crafted, FROST/NIXON is a history lesson that plays like a thriller and a fantastic stage to screen adaption that gets an A.
"That's our tragedy, you and I Mr. Frost. No matter how high we get, they still look down at us."
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