Rating: 
Summary: A superb film
Review: After having read many of the illuminative posts on this film I feel compelled to keep my comments here short as many of my positive thoughts on this film have already been touched upon. I simply want to state that "Nixon" is a superb film, an intriguing, contentious interpretation of American history which, in my humble opinion, will eventually be understood as a classic. What can be said that has not been said except that Stone's analysis of his title character is potent, touching, and altogether surprising. Stone does not vilify Nixon, but characterizes Nixon as a fundamentally good individual who is eventually corrupted by the trappings of power and that when Nixon falls it is tragic for all the positive that has gone unfulfilled. Nixon is presented as a three dimensional character and the film challenges us to weigh the evils committed against the expanse of Nixon's life. What emerges is an intriguing problematic: judgement is problematized. Stone has done a fascinating thing, for every potently evil Nixon moment we are given moments of pain, humility, and moral strength and an impression (the Jack Jones scene) that Nixon had the potential, as a Republican, to stand up and confront the extreme right wing elements of the American political landscape. Stone implies that some sort of radical moment was at hand in American history, a moment that Nixon undermined by his own actions. Nixon is a complex, long, and ultimately confrontational film. Stone has made the best sort of cinematic biography, one that challenges your views regardless of what they are politically.
Rating:
Summary: At churlish cross purposes.
Review: I also own a copy of the script, NIXON/AN OLIVER STONE FILM, Edited by Eric Hamburg, Screenplay by Stephen J. Rivele, Christopher Wilkinson Wilkinson, and Oliver Stone, which is like owning the words and music to a song; you can look at it and remember bits and pieces, but it is likely to be a long time before anyone with my limited capacities is likely to know everything about a song, much less a movie of this magnitude. People who live in constant indignation might be able to understand why movies are expected to last only so long, and this is one of those two videotape movies that might count as two selections in more ways than one, without having a special movie category for psychotic multiplicity for people who have actually been involved in something that was motivated by the idea, "Let's get some real killers," a line which might not appear in the movie, but the book has some essays in Part 1, from pages 1 to 79, including one by a screenwriter on this project called, "The Year of the Beast" on pages 56-60 about the process of making a movie out of this kind of thing. Movies are one of our most popular artforms, and as blockbusters go, often form the ultimate comparison with reality which help people like Ronald Reagan form some idea of what is going on in the world, moral and all. A lot of reality was behind the chilling aspects of this movie, and my key to what makes this movie tick is the bomshell on page 290 of the screenplay, where a "Nixon (V.O. on Tape)" imaginatively constructs what might have been on "an eighteen-and-a-half-minute gap in a critical Watergate tape." If the government actually has any secrets, Oliver Stone and United Stoners of America everywhere must believe "Whoever killed Kennedy came from this . . . this thing we created. This Beast . . . That's why we can't let this thing go any farther." As for actually watching the movie, I liked the line "Nixon can't say that," which was a gentle joke about whatever the truth might be, whenever the movie tried to approach how Nixon might react to the truth about anything. This movie should be good for people who think the United Stoners of America could learn a lot by using their imaginations to fill in a lot of gaps in our knowledge of Nixon as a character, and especially of our government as a monstrosity. I loved Martha Mitchell in this movie as I never had before, and I think it was because she added a human element which is quite common in movies, but quite sadly lacking in most of this show, and there are even footnotes on page 290 of the script to show how much study the people who made this movie went through to be able to suck the life out of this film so effectively.
Rating: 
Summary: Surprising
Review: I was really surprised by the excellence of this movie. Anthony Hopkins really pulled it off. He had to walk a fine line of impersonating Nixon without overdoing it into ham. Joan Allen was absolutely amazing with her presentation of Pat Nixon. Paul Sorvino is excellent as Kissinger, although he is way too tall. A stellar cast and refined sets are NIXON's cinematic strengths. Although Stone throws in regurgitations of his JFK conspiracy theories, the dramatic exploration of Nixon's character sweeps away most of the more "hypothetical" moments. The linkages between Nixon-the-politician and Nixon-the-kid are some of the movie's most glossy and speculative moments, going on for far too long. Also Stone couldn't resist throwing in weird little backdrop footage of war and protest during speeches and whatnot, only emphasizing the obvious. All in all, the movie is more than just a political position. It really presents Nixon's strengths and frailties as both a politician and a man. His political victories domestically and abroad are presented as well as his shady Watergate dealings and ego-extension via bombing Cambodia. His love for his family and his good intentions for the country are presented along with his paranoia, insecurities, and mental implosion towards the end of his presidency.
Rating:
Summary: The American equivalent of a Greek tragedy
Review: What infuriates all those apologists and fanatical supporters of Richard Nixon out there is that Oliver Stone supposedly has an axe to grind about their man by making a film like NIXON. They assumed a lot, but didn't even bother to see the film. The truth is that NIXON is much more even-handed in its portrayal of the 37th President of the United States than I thought it could be. Anthony Hopkins gives a reasonably fair portrayal of Nixon, and Joan Allen is tremendous as his wife Pat. Although Stone's penchant for conspiracy does get the better of him at times, he sees Nixon as more a tragic victim than as an evil power-monger, a vision that is closer to the truth than what Nixon's enemies made him out to be in reality. Stone wisely does not gloss over the simple facts about the man. Nixon was indisputably a great and cagey anticommunist politician who managed to split the Sino-Soviet communist alliance in two and thus promote stability in the Cold War world for years to come. But he left a lot to be desired as a human being, being paranoid, distrustful, deceitful, and, in the end, blatantly dishonest. In that sense, the saga of Richard Nixon ranks as the American equivalent of a Greek tragedy: so much explosive potential destroyed by scandal. As in JFK, Stone has assembled a massive cast of people: Ed Harris, Bob Hoskins, J.T. Walsh, and James Woods, just to name a few. Despite its few faults, NIXON is a fair portrait of perhaps the most frustrating and complicated man ever to reside at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Rating:
Summary: Powerful & Excellent!
Review: Nixon is one of the most powerful films I've ever seen. Oliver Stone does a excellent job with this powerful film. The film centers around Nixon in his younger life,the Watergate incident,and the effects that they had on him in his life. The film takes you deep into Nixon's emotions, and makes the audience fell sad and sorry for him. the film is 3 hours long, but keeps your attention the whole time. Anthony Hopkins and Joan Allen should have one the Academy Awrads for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress, for which they were nominated. The film contains great performances by the whole cast: James Woods,Paul Sorvino,J.T. Walsh and David Hyde Pierce. Oliver Stone should have been nominated for Best Director, and also a Best Picture nomination. This film was the best of 1995, and deserved to be nominated and win the Best Picture! This film makes number 11 on my 50 great films list, and will always in my opinion, be one of the greatest pictures ever! Overall this film is excellent, and I recommend it to everyone, because it is all around a great FILM!!!!!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: Oliver Stone can't go wrong!
Review: Oliver Stone's telling of the Nixon years is, at the very least, stupendous. Mr. Stone has a wonderful way of directing a film that brings the characters to life. In "Nixon", Anthony Hopkins brings the reality of the Nixon administration to the screen with a powerful resonance of character. Everyone has heard the stories of how paranoid Nixon was, but Hopkins brings this paranoia to life in exquisite detail. At times you can even see the madness of Hannibal Lecter in Nixon, which from many accounts accurately describes the true character of the man. While the film is long, it does grind its way into every detail of the man and the period. From a fireside chat with financiers (Larry Hagman is wonderful and makes you feel as if J.R. had a hand in the downfall), to a meeting on Air Force One between advisors, "Nixon" tells everything that no movie before had ever told, and will most likely never tell again.
Rating:
Summary: Not For the Kiddies
Review: Although the title of this review may falsely imply that this is a one-stop gorefest of a film, anyone who would just look at the title of the film would realize that the movie takes on more of a biographical undertone. And who better to provide us with a 3-hour+ epic with limited historical credibility than Oliver Stone? I must say immediately that I am a huge Oliver Stone fan, mainly impressed with the range of direction appearing in his films and his tendency to take filmmaking to an extreme. Along with JFK, which unlike this film is not a biographical account of a past president, Nixon takes the viewer on a ride which causes him to ponder, "is this true? Did it really happen this way?" Although thorough in character development and powerful in delivery, this is not meant to be a documentary so to speak. If anything, it is sort of a subjective adaptation of events that took place; a dramatization. The reason I say this film is not for children, is the level of its plot. Basically, you would have to had taken several college-level American history courses to even grasp some of the names and events mentioned by the actors in the first 20 minutes of the film to understand it. Nixon, for whatever else it may represent, is a tale of a president who felt he was never beloved by the people, and who always feared the long-looming shadow of his predecessor JFK. It describes the trials and tribulations of a man disjointed with the public, yet still pure at heart. The main focus of the film is on the notoriety of the Watergate Scandal, with the rest of the movie setting up the motive and the circumstances under which it took place. Nixon (played brilliantly by Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins) spends most of the movie sheltered by his cabinet and chiefs of staff in discussing various conspiracy issues that occurred in the 60s and 70s. Where this film truly blossoms, and where it earned a rare 5-star rating from me, was in its dynamics. Sure, 191min is a long movie (with the director's cut tallying an even greater 212min), but the film is brilliantly filled with "Oliver Stone-esque" flashbacks to old newsreel footage and supposed earlier points in the character's lives. To mention the fate of all the characters would be futile in that there are so many key roles. Look for appearances by James Woods, Joan Allen, J.T. Walsh, Dan Hedaya, David Hyde Pierce... among others. The only place this DVD lacks is in the lack of instillment of extra features, a maladie which was remedied in the Oliver Stone boxset. I cannot wait for Stone's next attempt at a president, with the title being Clinton.
Rating:
Summary: Underrated, Excellent, Unexpectedly Compassionate Portrayal
Review: Oliver Stone's "Nixon" is quite simply a great American film, one that has been shamefully overlooked in comparison with the seriously flawed "JFK." Stone obviously took notice of the criticisms of that earlier film, and while some of his conspiracy-mania appears in "Nixon", overall the later film is a much more balanced and human effort. Stone can direct like a lunatic (has anybody but the seriously disturbed sat through "Natural Born Killers" more than once?) but he is an undeniably intelligent and talented filmmaker who can rise to the occasion when challenged. And he was obviously challenged by the task of coming to terms with Richard Nixon, the dominant political figure of his youth. Stone dedicated the movie to his late father, and it is obviously an attempt by a son to understand patriarchal authority--and its abuses. Stone's aggressive style is much on display here, but it helps draw you into the drama, rather than distracting as it has in other films. Ther's some truly inspired casting, from David Hyde Pierce as John Dean to James Woods and J.T. Walsh as Haldeman and Ehrlichman, to the splendid Joan Allen as Pat Nixon. But the centerpiece is Anthony Hopkins as Nixon who gives another remarkable performance in his patented manner of "clenched flamboyance" (as one critic described his acting.) He makes you feel every hurt, every slight that the man ever felt, as well as letting us see the undeniable brilliance as well as the pathetic flaws. By the time the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sings "Shanendoah" over footage of Nixon's funeral and the closing credits (a masterful, unironic touch) you may find yourself genuinely grieving over the wasted genius. One of the best political films ever made, one whose reputation should grow over the coming years.
Rating:
Summary: ok movie
Review: We have not Nixon yet because I am only 14 in 9 grade, but I will probably learn more about him in 10 grade. I always wanted to know about Nixon and now I know a little more about him. I liked Anthony Hopkins in the film too.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant
Review: Oliver Stone's "Nixon" is probably one the best films of the 90's. Stone's Nixon may be dubious as a historical source, but as film it's utterly compelling from start to finish. It could have probably been even longer. As it is, "Nixon" shows us the drama of 14 explosive years of American politics and makes us sympathize with a brilliant politician whose paranoia made him discrace the office of the Presidency. Stone's direction is outstanding; He combines montages of real historical images with dramaticized reinactments brilliantly; the film's editing, dark and foreboding John William's score, and convincing acting are all top notch. "Nixon" portrays a man whose insecurities and issues tragically lead him to paranoia and corruption. "They always hated Nixon", The President says. At one point he yells, "This isn't about Vietnam. It's about me!". Nixon feels so assaulted by the anti-war movement because he can't comprehend any sincere principles behind it; he feels it's just the case of the "Eastern Establishment" against him personally, and that the communists are influencing the American youth. After Kent State, it's just a downworld spiral for the Nixon administration. Vietnam basically destroyed Nixon as it had to LBJ. But you can't help but feel it was all inevitable because Stone makes the viewer empathize with the depths of Nixon's insecurity and vindiction. "He's the darkness reaching out for the dark", Ed Harris-as-Howard Hunt says to David Hyde Pierce-as-John Dean in a brilliant scene. The film also shows Nixon's purpose and strength; in a scene in the President's yatch Nixon declares over dinner only he could could go to China. And there is a great scene where Nixon stands up to the greedy, racist business tycoons who funded his '68 Presidential campaign. The casting of Nixon is great. Anthony Hopkins may not look like Nixon(and maybe Nixon's personal charm was downplayed-that's what people who knew Nixon have charged), but he gives the role such conviction. It's truly an Oscar worthy performance. There isn't one weak link in the entire cast. James Woods is especially good as the cabinet member whose own principles and prejudices encourage Nixon's paranoia. After watching this film, you'll truly feel sorry for Nixon, and will see that greatness was in his grasp.
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