The Assassination of Richard Nixon | Review

Mueller’s haunting drama expropriates the American Dream.

Loosely based on a failed freak hijacking incident that occurred in the 70’s, this debut from director/co-writer Niels Mueller shows that honesty – is not always the best policy. Mirroring the scope of Scorsese’s Taxi Driver, The Assassination of Richard Nixon is an intense look into one man’s progressive melt-down and disillusionment. Like Deniro’s Travis Bickle, Sean Penn’s Sam Bicke is a fragile unit. Triggered by a series of disappointments and wronged by society, this failed salesman, lousy brother, weak husband and unprepared businessman simply can’t hack it anymore – and leaving his mark is his last chance at redemption. Penn’s (21 Grams) co-star Naomi Watts (I ♥ Huckabees) plays his distant wife and the unavailable crutch, while Don Cheadle plays a friend who despite sharing Sam’s views, he can’t fathom taking the same course of action. Disappointed and let down by the system, this isolated and alienated soul’s distrust of government and society are paralleled with tube shots of old television broadcast footage of Nixon and the days leading up to the Watergate scandal. Sean Penn is a one man wrecking crew, – at first it appears as if the actor unfortunately lifts from the one-dimensional character found in I am Sam, but thankfully he delivers a throbbing, more complete character performance as a shell-shocked, psychologically disturbed man in the midst of a downward spiral. Beautifully shot with extremely well-framed tight close-up shots of Penn, Emmanuel Lubezki’s cinematography manages to enhances the anti-heroes’ disenchantment and it also highlights the actor’s Oscar nom noteworthy performance. The narrative sometimes lacks a sense of cohesiveness, some scenes offer odd explanations to some of the protagonist’s relationships and while The Assassination of Richard Nixon lacks an aftertaste or afterthought, this is the type of auteur effort that doesn’t quite jive well as a narrative, but succeeds in the more subtler moments.

Rating 3 stars