The answer must be yes. As its succinct title shows, all the outstanding aspects of this film are completely supported by the two main characters, not only the charm of the characters themselves, but also the performance of the actors. As a film that focuses on dialogue, it may be a little boring at first glance, but when the plot gets better, the more you taste, the more enjoyable it is.
The two sides of this "wrestling" are not generalists, one is a well-known British talk show host, and the other is a former president who has been in politics for many years. At the same time, for both, the meaning of this interview is extraordinary. As for the former, the career has encountered a bottleneck, and the interview has put a lot of financial pressure on it. If it fails, it will fall to the bottom; as for the latter, the political career has almost come to an end. There will be opportunities for a comeback. So, for either side, this interview is a war.
From the perspective of the process, this historic interview is full of psychological and intellectual contests, which can be called "a battle of wits and courage". Foster's forte was a gift for courage, self-confidence, and communication, while Nixon was more cunning and more witty. In the first three sessions of the interview, Foster was restrained. His questions were resolved one by one by Nixon's "Tai Chi Push Hands", and turned into an excuse to his advantage. But just as the production team was devastated and about to disintegrate, Foster, with strong self-confidence, careful preparation, and changing questioning strategies, made a fatal blow in the fourth game, breaking Nixon's psychological defense and was forced to admit himself. fault.
However, the brilliance of this film is not limited to the chatter in the interview, but the deeper inner world of the characters. The choreographer reflects the character and psychological changes of both parties from the details of character behavior, language, and activities outside the interview, including the preparations of the two camps, plus Michael Sheen (as Foster) and Frank Langella (as Nixon) ), and successfully created two flesh-and-blood real characters. Especially the latter, from condescending and domineering at the beginning, to exhaustion and frankness later, his extremely self-respecting and conceited character is vividly displayed, allowing us to understand the situation of "Nixon" in many ways. figure.
Historical truth is important, but for a biopic, it is not the most important. Compared with this, the key to success is whether the characters can be made alive in the interweaving of historical facts and human nature, and whether the audience can deeply appreciate the state of mind of the historical figures.
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