SYNOPSIS:
The
film centers on a businessman Samuel Bicke (Sean Penn) who in 1974 attempted
to hijack an airplane so that he could crash it into the White House and
kill Richard Nixon. Considered both a failure both at home and in the workplace,
this ordinary man finds himself forced to take extraordinary measures to
make his presence felt. At this point, dreams give way to delusions. A new
Samuel Bicke, uncharacteristically resolute and resourceful, sets out on
a chilling crusade to right the world’s wrongs. He has an appointment
with history.
MOVIE
REVIEW :
If you happen to have a good grasp of contemporary American history, you
will know that Richard Nixon, the 37th President of the United States never
get himself killed by any assassination attempts. He died instead of a massive
stroke in 1994.
So
what is this film all about since the title implies an assassination? It
all boils down to one man, Sam Bicke. Bicke likens each and everyone in
America to a grain of sand. You see, Sam is trying hard to patch back with
his ex-wife and children, he has a long unrealised goal of selling tyres
on wheels, he is also estranged from his brother and best of all, he prefers
to earn a decent living by not lying his way through as a salesman. These
and thousands other factors make Sam an unhappy grumpy man that is full
of loath against the world and mainly, President Richard Nixon for causing
all his troubles and depriving him of a slice of the America dream.
From
Sam's point of view, he is indeed a man in need of empathy. He stands by
his own true beliefs of not cheating, something which you may or may not
agree. He's proving hard to his ex-wife he's a changed person. He's a man
who is full of passion in pursuing his dreams.
But
from the audience's point of view, Sam Bicke needs to see a psychiatrist
immediately. Who in the world never cheats at some point in their life,
irregardless it's to your wife or your boss or to your customers. Who has
never faced problems in relationships before? Who truly genuinely has realised
their childhood dreams? Do everyone have to resort to assassinate the President
or any political figures just because of setbacks? Just move on with your
life and forget about the whole thing you might urgue. You don't find a
nice beach if there's no grains of sand.
Well,
that's the beauty of "The Assassination of Richard Nixon". It
makes you think, debate about things happening socially around us. It connects
and binds to us even in this very day. Director
Niels Mueller who also wrote
the screenplay unfolds this tragic figure beautifully to the end.
Sean Penn is thrillingly convincing as the penn up (pardon the pun) Sam
Bicke. Naomi Watts has little chance to dispense her charm in her limited
role as Bicke's ex-wife while Don Cheadle (who plays Bicke's friend) managed
to hold his own opposite Penn.
TRIVIA:
There's
plenty of whos-whos of Hollywood backing this project. Alfonso Cauron (Y
TU MAMÁ TAMBIÉN) is the producer while Alexander Payne (Sideways)
and Leonardo Dicaprio are the executive producers.
SPECIAL
FEATURES :
This
Code 3 DVD has zilch special features unless you count scenes selection
as one.
AUDIO:
The
DVD comes in only English Dolby Digital 2.0.
VISUAL:
Emmanuel
Lubezki who shot movies liked "Sleepy Hollow", "Meet Joe
Black" gave the film an edgy, looming sense of danger feel to it. Although
specks of dirt are spotted on some frames, the colours are still visually
enriching. Scenes of deep shades of grey are immensely rich as well. Overall,
a nice decent transfer for an indie movie.
MOVIE
RATING:
(Apparently not a film of guns and bombs, rather an intense journey of soul
searching and self evaluation)
DVD RATING:
Review by Linus Tee
