Frost/Nixon (2008)

I am very ignorant when it comes to American history so whenever I feel like learning something new, I watch historical movies (I love reading but reading about history? Kill me now, please). This time I watched Frost/Nixon because I wanted to know the truth behind the Watergate scandal (and because Sam Rockwell is in it). 

After seeing Richard Nixon (Frank Langella) resigning from the White House, in order to get more credibility and money, British talk show host David Frost (Michael Sheen), who is known for interview Hollywood and pop music stars, decides to set up a series of interviews to confront the questions of the former president's time in office and the Watergate scandal. Nixon agrees as he sees the interviews with the politically inexperienced Frost as a way to redeem himself.

Plot-wise, there's nothing I can complain about Frost/Nixon as it is based on true events. Also, my knowledge of the Watergate scandal is pretty limited and I wasn't even aware of this series of interviews so I'm not really in the position to say whether it is accurate or not. And yet I can say it is a beautifully crafted plot as it was able to hold my attention from the beginning to the end, which is a lot considering I don't have the slightest interest in American history. In spite of the fact that it's "just" an interview, Frost/Nixon never gets even boring as it is filled with tension and suspense (I don't know how I'd feel if I knew how the story would play out though).

The plot, however, isn't very important as Frost/Nixon actually is an intriguing character study of both Frost and Nixon. David Frost is fearless and ambitious and while at first, he is just some shallow entertainer who sees in the former president of the United States his chance to get big ratings, he eventually realises how important to the American people his job is. Richard Nixon, on the other hand, is a fragile, insecure and fearful man who is trying to get back some humanity.

Universal Pictures

Both are made compelling by the actors who portrayed them. Michael Sheen completely disappears into the character of David Frost and does a great job especially in delivering the stress Frost was under, and he makes the transaction from shallow playboy to journalist seriously committed to the job very believable. Frank Langella is terrific as Nixon. I have watched some videos with real Nixon on YouTube and it truly amazed me how well Langella captured every single detail of Nixon's facial expressions and body language.

As for the support, the characters may not be as developed as Frost and Nixon, but the actors give strong performances nevertheless. Kavin Bacon as Nixon's assistant and Sam Rockwell as the journalist determined to make Nixon pay for Watergate are the two standouts, but Oliver Platt and Matthew Macfadyen too do a good job.

Home Again (2017)

You know when you see a trailer and you're like, wow this film looks bad? Well, that was my reaction to Home Again's trailer. But I do love Reese Witherspoon so I watched it anyway, consoling myself by telling it would be just another mediocre romantic comedy. And by the way, it looked a tiny bit fun from the trailer I'd seen months ago. Unfortunately for me, it wasn't your average rom-com but something much worse. 

Alice (Reese Witherspoon) is a recently separated mother of two who has returned home, in California, to start over and to be close to her mother (Candice Bergen), a former actress. She is also turning 40 and goes celebrate with her girlfriends. She eventually meets three young aspiring (and homeless) filmmakers and brings them home. The day after, Alice's mother shows up at her house, and, long story short (because I don't have all day and neither do you, I guess), Alice lets them stay in her guesthouse and starts dating Harry (Pico Alexander), one of the three boys. 

The plot is clichéd, predictable, idiotic, unrealistic to say the least and has no development whatsoever. The story starts in a certain way and ends in that same way. There's a lot going on in the middle, a lot of pointless subplots that have a very predictable outcome, but nothing really happens nor changes in this film. And by the way, the ending is so unsatisfactory. The May-December romance is also terrible. 

The characters are just obnoxious. They are flat, bland, one-dimensional characters, living clichés also. There's one thing I have to praise director and writer Hallie Meyers-Shyer for, writing evenly awful characters. It doesn't matter whether they are female or male characters, they all are very poorly written. And frankly, I feel sorry for Reese Witherspoon. She tries to bring her sweetness and charms into this but she ain't god hence she can't save the unsavable. And the overall acting is so dull and lifeless.

Open Road Films

But the worst is yet to come. As if that I've mentioned above wasn't enough, Home Again is also terribly unfunny. I wasn't expecting the most hilarious film of the year but frankly, mainly given the way the film's title was translated here in Italy (40 is the new 20), I was expecting a movie that would play a little on that concept. I thought it'd show this 40-year-old woman having fun, enjoying life. Instead, Alice spends most of her time worrying and not enjoying life. 

The film has its sappy moments, but not a single funny moment. I'm not sure Meyers-Shyer remembered she was writing a comedy because there aren't gags, jokes, absolutely anything in here to make you laugh. At times, Home Again feels more like a drama rather than a comedy. The problem is that there's no drama whatsoever in this film. It's absolutely flat. 

First Trailer For Sci-Fi PASSENGERS Looks Like An Awesome Ride!

Director Morten Tyldum's PASSENGERS looks VERY promising. First of all the casting is intriguing with Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence headlining (Michael Sheen and Laurence Fishburne are no slouches either). But what I find most interesting is the mystery behind being woken up too soon on an epic space journey. Let's hope what has been done before is not repeated here - perhaps something original. I don't think that's too much to ask from screenplay writer Jon Spaihts.

Here's the movie's storyline:
Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt are two passengers onboard a spaceship transporting them to a new life on another planet. The trip takes a deadly turn when their hibernation pods mysteriously wake them 90 years before they reach their destination. As Jim and Aurora try to unravel the mystery behind the malfunction, they begin to fall for each other, unable to deny their intense attraction... only to be threatened by the imminent collapse of the ship and the discovery of the truth behind why they woke up.

Should look amazing in 3D. Can't wait to see this!

PASSENGERS opens on December 21.