Out of a quartet of Watergate movies, "Dick" is the lightest and 'All the President's Men" has the most gravitas. "Frost/Nixon," Ron Howard's probably money-losing but Oscar-nominated adaptation of the stage play (which I saw tonight), has both light and serious moments - and the theme of one of its key scenes overlaps heavily with that of Oliver Stone's dark "Nixon." Michael Sheen (of "The Queen") and Frank Langella shine as journalist/entertainer David Frost and former President Nixon, respectively. Sam Rockwell and Kevin Bacon are also great as aides. The movie portrays both as somewhat sympathetic characters. Perhaps less a Watergate movie than a story of media innovation (a la "Quiz Show") and a character study/buddy movie (a la "Lethal Weapon"). Filmed occasionally as a pseudo-documentary, this movie requires no intimate knowledge of Watergate to follow and no great interest in Watergate to find it interesting.
-- Perry
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