The Assassination of Richard Nixon at the Grand Cinema
The Assassination of Richard Nixon (95 min, Rated R)
As the Watergate scandal is breaking and President Nixon can be seen all over the television and newspapers, Sam Bicke (Sean Penn) struggles to earn money as an office furniture salesman as he tries to win back his estranged wife, Marie (a brunette Naomi Watts). He has grand plans of starting a mobile tire store with his friend Bonny (Don Cheadle), but he is so blinded by truth and honesty that he stands in the way of his own potential success. His rage continues to build as he sees another man spending time with Marie and the kids until he cannot control it any longer and resolves to kill Nixon, whom he blames for all of society's ills. The story is told through a series of flashbacks as Bicke dictates into a tape recorder the sad details of his life to composer Leonard Bernstein, the only person he thinks will understand him. From the way he covets his mustache to how he reacts when he's around Marie, Bicke, who sees himself as representative of the loss of the American dream, is a simple man on the verge of exploding. Based on true events, the film also deals with the racism and sexism that was rampant in the early-to-mid-1970s.
'The highest possible thumbs up for Penn and a big thumbs up as well for first-time director Niels Mueller.'
-- Richard Roeper, EBERT & ROEPER
'The Assassination of Richard Nixon is a triumph for its star and the writers, who make us cringe with empathy for a man who taps into the latent loser in all of us.'
-- Jan Stuart, NEWSDAY
As the Watergate scandal is breaking and President Nixon can be seen all over the television and newspapers, Sam Bicke (Sean Penn) struggles to earn money as an office furniture salesman as he tries to win back his estranged wife, Marie (a brunette Naomi Watts). He has grand plans of starting a mobile tire store with his friend Bonny (Don Cheadle), but he is so blinded by truth and honesty that he stands in the way of his own potential success. His rage continues to build as he sees another man spending time with Marie and the kids until he cannot control it any longer and resolves to kill Nixon, whom he blames for all of society's ills. The story is told through a series of flashbacks as Bicke dictates into a tape recorder the sad details of his life to composer Leonard Bernstein, the only person he thinks will understand him. From the way he covets his mustache to how he reacts when he's around Marie, Bicke, who sees himself as representative of the loss of the American dream, is a simple man on the verge of exploding. Based on true events, the film also deals with the racism and sexism that was rampant in the early-to-mid-1970s.
'The highest possible thumbs up for Penn and a big thumbs up as well for first-time director Niels Mueller.'
-- Richard Roeper, EBERT & ROEPER
'The Assassination of Richard Nixon is a triumph for its star and the writers, who make us cringe with empathy for a man who taps into the latent loser in all of us.'
-- Jan Stuart, NEWSDAY
posted by Sanjeev Narang at 11:52 AM
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