4
Frost/Nixon barely succeeds at being a competent re-creation of the interviews and the time leading up to them, but most importantly this film has no substance and no insight into anything, which is amazing considering the vast array of issues that could've been delved into. This is a carelessly made hollow shell of a movie whose bland dialogue and hackneyed plot devices cheapen what is thickly dramatic and wholly interesting material. The cast all perform well, although Frank Langella's Nixon, while nuanced very well, is not compelling and never lets us get a glimpse of the feelings of the real man. The exciting last 20 minutes or so of the film somewhat made up for the mediocrity of the first 110, but you can't really give credit for that bit of excitement to the filmmakers because it should go to the real David Frost and his team of researchers for creating those moments in the original interview. But what really [...] me off about Frost/Nixon was it's inclusion at the Academy Awards. This film's nominations in the Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay categories are without a doubt some of the most disappointing decisions in history. Especially considering some of the excellent films that were overlooked in favour of this flavourless cardboard cutout film. This is exactly the kind of movie that film-goers should be condemning. I highly encourage everyone to support original and creative new cinema by passing on the run of the mill Frost/Nixon in favour of a film like Slumdog Millionaire.