Ron Howard? Oh yeah, he makes pretty good films.

Rating: 8/10 (12 December 2008)

What negative things can we say about Ron Howard? He narrated Arrested Development, he starred in Happy Days, he has Clint Howard as a brother, and he always makes good, solid and entertaining films. As such is the case with his latest biopic- Frost/Nixon. It treads mostly on requisite Howard ground, and some people might say this is just another 'Oscar Bait' film filled with Oscar Bait-ish principles. But you know what? Most of those people forgot that the film is actually pretty damn good.
The film basically follows the famous Frost and Nixon interview in the late 70's; what happened in and outside of said event. We get to see the overall preparation of the interview, the comedy bits between Rockwell and Oliver Platt (James Reston Jr and Bob Zelnick respectively), the drama involving David Frost and his near-impossible challenge, his love interest, Kevin Bacon insulting Frost's shoes, a drunk Nixon talking about cheeseburgers, and the third act which can be summed up as- a happy ending. All shot of course in stylized cinematography and editing, with gorgeous production design backing everything up. Now, there is a lot of hype with this film, and the reason isn't because of Michael Sheen.
Sad to say that while Sheen does admirably in most scenes, he is nothing compared to the towering performance of Frank Langella as Nixon. Hell, I thought it was going to be something resembling a parody; an over-hyped, average performance, just like George Clooney in Syriana, or Sandra Bullock in Erin Brokovich. And yes, ladies and gentleman, I WAS VERY F*CKING WRONG.
I underestimated Langella, which has proved himself better than Anthony Hopkins in my eyes. Because it isn't just about looking like Nixon, it is about emulating him and all of his subtle emotions, expressions, you name it. Langella nails it with intense precision and 'no-holds barred' aggression that I quite simply felt just like Sheen in the film- awe-struck. Which makes me wonder if Sheen was really awe-struck in his scenes with Langella...
In other news, the rest of the acting was efficient. Rockwell and Platt did their usual characters, Bacon was a no-nonsense military officer, and Rebecca Hall looked pretty. I think Howard didn't really bother with the other characters; I think he knew from the get-go that this was a going to be vehicle movie for Langella. Meh, I don't blame him.
The result of the equation is an 8.2 out of 10. But WAY?!, you may ask. Well, this film felt just like any other Howard Drama (there will be no surprises here), but the difference being that the supportive acting wasn't as memorable or as good as said Drama's. But what we get to see though, is one of the best performances of the year by Frank Langella, and that in itself is reason for admission.
8.2/10