Overwiew :Using a nonchronological narrative style à la CITIZEN KANE (from which it quotes), Stone explores the former president's strict Quaker childhood, his nascent political strivings in law school, and his strangely self-effacing courtship of wife Pat (Joan Allen). The contrasts of his character are revealed early, in the vicious campaign against Helen Gahagan Douglas and the oddly masochistic Checkers speech. His defeat at the hands of the hated and envied John F. Kennedy in the 1960 presidential election, followed by the loss of the 1962 California gubernatorial race, seems to signal the end of his career. Yet, although wholly lacking in charisma, he remains a brilliant political operator and seizes the opportunity provided by the backlash against the antiwar movement to take the presidency in 1968. It is only when safely in office, running far ahead in the polls for the 1972 presidential election, that his growing paranoia comes to full flower, triggering the tragedy of Watergate. Surprisingly, Stone evinces considerable compassion as he gives us a Nixon of tragic stature and nearly Shakespearean dimension in this powerfully moving film. Hopkins's extraordinary performance is complemented by the star-studded cast.
