Let's talk about starring, one of Hopkins' most classic screen characters is Hannibal, so every time I see him appearing, I always think of this "cannibal posthumous son" who combines cruelty and wisdom. The difference between him and Nixon is relatively large, but the performance is so real. Nixon is not as eloquent and charming as Kennedy. He is used to sweating profusely under pressure. The director has focused on portraying this many times. The iconic Nixon embarrassment. I quote a film review from someone who I personally think is very apt to write
"Anthony Hopkins does a great job, even though he doesn't look too similar, he plays a real person in the dark and the sun very well, His pain, his contradictions, his sins, his goodness, his greatness, his insignificance. He is a person, not a saint."
I agree with this sentence very much. Nixon sat alone in the dark room. When someone came in, a beam of light that seemed to him might be very dazzling shone on his pale and bewildered face. Sometimes he fell into contemplation, and sometimes he realized something. He used others again and again, reflected and hesitated again and again, and finally received applause when he decided to leave the White House. In 1994, when he passed away, five presidents came to see him off.
Revisit a dialogue before his resignation in the film
"If you don't want to hand over the tapes, you have to be civilians, and civilians can keep their tapes"
"What if I don't resign"
"...The president can use the military, Lincoln once did"
"..."
He's not a perfect man, he's just a real mortal living in darkness and sunshine.
View more about Nixon reviews
