Comments on: Monday Movie Review: Frost/Nixon http://www.deborahlipp.com/wordpress/2008/12/29/monday-movie-review-frostnixon/ Deborah Lipp goes on about Wicca, politics, movies, Paganism, and cats. Not necessarily in that order. Sun, 14 Mar 2010 23:12:15 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Deborah Lipp http://www.deborahlipp.com/wordpress/2008/12/29/monday-movie-review-frostnixon/comment-page-1/#comment-107838 Deborah Lipp Mon, 05 Jan 2009 14:50:45 +0000 http://www.deborahlipp.com/wordpress/?p=2069#comment-107838 I've been reading more about the "historical inaccuracy" complaints, and some are true and some are dubious, but they are complaints about focus, e.g. it wasn't really a battle between Frost and Nixon, it was a collaboration, yada yada. It isn't about what actually happened in Watergate or anything like that. I’ve been reading more about the “historical inaccuracy” complaints, and some are true and some are dubious, but they are complaints about focus, e.g. it wasn’t really a battle between Frost and Nixon, it was a collaboration, yada yada. It isn’t about what actually happened in Watergate or anything like that.

]]> By: Rogue http://www.deborahlipp.com/wordpress/2008/12/29/monday-movie-review-frostnixon/comment-page-1/#comment-107805 Rogue Mon, 05 Jan 2009 08:10:13 +0000 http://www.deborahlipp.com/wordpress/?p=2069#comment-107805 An excellent move, but just like anything else political, the crooks before and after Nixon don't get the same kind of attention they deserve. An excellent move, but just like anything else political, the crooks before and after Nixon don’t get the same kind of attention they deserve.

]]> By: Deborah Lipp http://www.deborahlipp.com/wordpress/2008/12/29/monday-movie-review-frostnixon/comment-page-1/#comment-107758 Deborah Lipp Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:15:29 +0000 http://www.deborahlipp.com/wordpress/?p=2069#comment-107758 By "pseudo-documentary" I mean Zelig-type insertion of Langella into actual news footage, or recreations of that footage. Nixon's famous victory sign as he boarded the helicopter when he left the White House, for example. The movie was rich in historic detail, and extremely accurate to the best of my knowledge. I'm not an expert on Watergate, but I'm a very well-informed amateur. The fictionalization was in private scenes, and some of the historic dialogue was moved around. For example, there's a bit in the real interviews where Nixon talks about useless people and having a purpose in life. In the film, he says that privately. By “pseudo-documentary” I mean Zelig-type insertion of Langella into actual news footage, or recreations of that footage. Nixon’s famous victory sign as he boarded the helicopter when he left the White House, for example.

The movie was rich in historic detail, and extremely accurate to the best of my knowledge. I’m not an expert on Watergate, but I’m a very well-informed amateur. The fictionalization was in private scenes, and some of the historic dialogue was moved around. For example, there’s a bit in the real interviews where Nixon talks about useless people and having a purpose in life. In the film, he says that privately.

]]> By: MJ Ray http://www.deborahlipp.com/wordpress/2008/12/29/monday-movie-review-frostnixon/comment-page-1/#comment-107757 MJ Ray Sun, 04 Jan 2009 11:15:57 +0000 http://www.deborahlipp.com/wordpress/?p=2069#comment-107757 It's a rewrite of a play based on interviews about an actual recorded event - a play by a writer who talks about "the difference between accuracy and truth" - a play that was criticised in reviews for inventing events. Does the "seamless blend of documentary, pseudo-documentary, and drama" mean that fact and fiction are muddled to the point that Frost/Nixon is *only* useful as entertainment and says almost nothing about history? If you're interested in history, why not watch the contemporary recordings and commentary? If you're not interested in history, you probably won't go to see F/N anyway. It’s a rewrite of a play based on interviews about an actual recorded event – a play by a writer who talks about “the difference between accuracy and truth” – a play that was criticised in reviews for inventing events. Does the “seamless blend of documentary, pseudo-documentary, and drama” mean that fact and fiction are muddled to the point that Frost/Nixon is *only* useful as entertainment and says almost nothing about history? If you’re interested in history, why not watch the contemporary recordings and commentary? If you’re not interested in history, you probably won’t go to see F/N anyway.

]]> By: Deborah Lipp http://www.deborahlipp.com/wordpress/2008/12/29/monday-movie-review-frostnixon/comment-page-1/#comment-107482 Deborah Lipp Tue, 30 Dec 2008 15:31:16 +0000 http://www.deborahlipp.com/wordpress/?p=2069#comment-107482 I think it's really important to remember that a tricky son of a bitch <em>can </em>be charming. If we believe that monsters <em>look </em>like monsters, we are far too easily fooled. I think it’s really important to remember that a tricky son of a bitch can be charming. If we believe that monsters look like monsters, we are far too easily fooled.

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