The Assassination of Richard Nixon (2004)

The Assassination of Richard Nixon (2004) is the feature-film directorial debut of Niels Mueller, starring Sean Penn as divorced father Sam Bicke, so deeply wounded and down on his luck, that his last perceived shot at the American Dream is to make his mark eliminating the moral scourge that is President Richard Nixon. Sam, himself, struggles with a very rigid morality, a seeming inability to adapt to world that is increasingly not drawn in black and white. This rigidity and stubbornness causes him to lose nearly every relationship in his life, and, indeed, causes him to cease to function socially.

Sam's plot is recounted throughout the film in voice-over, as Sam creates a series of tapes to send to Mr. Leonard Bernstein. Sam wants Bernstein to tell his story because Bernstein's music represents perhaps the one truly pure thing he's experienced in the world. And, certainly, as befits the character of Sam, he sees only the ultimate product in all of its grandeur, without understanding the messy work and effort that's gone into creating it. Sam, too, wants his world to be effortless. Not that he's lazy, but that he's not able to confront the ambiguity he must encounter each day in order to be a functional adult in society.

The movie truly hinges on Penn's incredibly nuanced, heartbreaking performance as Sam Bicke, middle-aged failure, hopelessly unable to connect to those around him, deeply sincere and well-meaning, heartbreakingly naive. Because of the emotions that Penn is able to craft in his lined face, we somehow understand how Bicke comes, in his mind, to the conclusion that his only shot at greatness must be also be self-destructive, misguided, fatal. Penn makes it clear, in very subtle movements, how much Bicke is hurting, how desperately he's flailing for meaning and connection. It's an impressive performance, and I think the film depends on it. The supporting cast is also excellent, with Naomi Watts as his ex-wife, trying to keep things together for her kids while dealing with a increasingly disturbed and disturbing Sam, and Don Cheadle as Sam's only friend.

Behind the scenes as well, Mueller has an incredible team. The movie is co-produced by Alexander Payne, apparently a film school buddy. Alfonso Cuaron also produces, as does Emmanuel Lubetski, Cuaron's cinematographer, and DP for this film. So, the movie has a great creative team from the start, and it's hard to know exactly what Mueller's mark on this film is. Still, he wrote Tadpole, which I loved, so I expect good things from him. A welcome subtle character study with fantastic performances. I also really liked the use of archival footage, from Nixon's television appearances to general late 60's/early 70's social upheaval. Highly recommended. Based on a true story.