Nixon, written – with two others – and directed by Oliver Stone - Eight out of 10

Nixon, written – with two others – and directed by Oliver Stone

Eight out of 10

From the start, it must by stated that this is a prejudiced, biased note for two main reasons:

The first is that knowing the extra curriculum activities – so to say – of the director has an impact on the perspective I have on what he has and will produce and not for the better.

Oliver Stone is too involved, friendly, admiring, colluding, encouraging, promoting of tyrants to be easily appreciated as a filmmaker.

These are two different things, the cinematic activity – which is often admirable – and the political attachments, hence the admission of partiality and guilt.

The second distortion of the truth could be attributed to an element connected with the first, the fact that for the under signed Nixon does not appear the Dark Horse, Demonical figure that all hated.

As he self-justifying repeated, he has opened China, ended the Vietnam War and made peace with Russia, as the most outstanding achievements of his in the ned flawed rule.

Again, knowing the tendency of Oliver Stone to use hearsay, innuendo and outright implausible conspiracy theories – like in JFK, where the conclusion is that the actual shooter was just a scapegoat – it is difficult to believe what is included in the motion picture.

Maybe the only president who has had to resign – up to Trump, even if the present leader of the world is not the type that would give up, it is more probable that he behaves as Bill Maher predicts and if he loses the next elections, or at the end of a disastrous two terms, he would just stay in the White House and refuse to go no matter what – is the man presented in the film

Perhaps he has asked Henry Kissinger to kneel with him, although the foreign secretary was Jewish and an unbeliever at that, to pray to God, saying they all must be humble.

It would have to be included, this episode, in writings or revelations made by the diplomat, otherwise Stone is less than credible for this viewer, as the one who likes Castro, Chavez and other monsters.

Even if we doubt the veracity of some – or most – of what this fiction – it is not a documentary after all – purports, some striking elements would make us worry.

There are quite a few similitudes with the present.

One is sure to think of Trump and his legal problems – the Bingo indictments as they have been called – a man who has issues on all fronts, Russia collusion, top people in his entourage convicted.

Furthermore, the fight with the media was one obsession that Nixon shares with the present president, the latter calling journalists the real enemy of the people and insisting on fake news.

Alas, Richard Nixon was a very intelligent man and he does not have that in common with the one who has the most unaccomplished, to say the least, of all American leaders.

If Nixon has had the perspective, the grand vision to open up to china, the overtures that this weak, simple in the worse sense of the world American leader has made are flawed and perverse.

He has encouraged Kim of North Korea to get worldwide publicity without making him stop his deadly activities, praised Putin and believed him over his own national intelligence agencies.

Nixon did not like Mao – who has some crazy, often funny statements, although it is hard to know if they were true – nor Leonid Brezhnev, but maneuvered with astuteness and talent.

As for the silly Trump – if they praise him, that is the ticket…where Nixon studied diligently and worked hard – for the wrong deeds often – the simpleton that rules the world does not even read important documents beyond the first page, unless his name is there…

Many interesting, even fascinating details, conversations, maybe even revelations – if proved true – make the watching of this motion picture more than entertaining, in spite of the caveats mentioned and the fact that the main character needs to be almost identical to Macbeth.

Mao says that his writings are bullshit, he has no fear of the Russians – he is too old for that – asks Kissinger what is the secret of his success with so many women, given he is fat.

There is the famous answer – that “power is the ultimate aphrodisiac” and so many other gems, pieces of conversations with the Soviet leader, interrupted because the Water Gate scandal is unfolding…Brezhnev insisting that Mao is not to be trusted, only to have Nixon reply…

“He had been your friend for twenty years!”