And thanks for the comment, Sam. Sounds like we are on exactly the same page with this one. I agree – Howard is a wonderful director, and doesn’t deserve the ribbing he gets. You just can’t ignore that his films fit into a certain mold, and you have to roll your eyes a bit when they come out.

“But when he pushes the politics (both past and current) to the side and removes the in-your-face interviews; when he boils the picture down to its core conflict – two men drawing rhetorical swords against one another – and ceases to ram the bigger picture down your throat; and when he allows Martin Michael Sheen and Langella’s performances to breathe on their own, Frost/Nixon becomes a thing of beauty.”

I must wholeheartedly agree with you on these counts Evan, as I do feel like you that the first 40 minutes were inviting disaster, which as you rightly say was “miscalculated.” Likewise I concur with your argument that “Howard’s films ‘ache’ for Oscars.” Howard has been a punching bag for years, and while I don’t think he is the untalented hack that many do, I share teh opinion that he hasn’t much greatness to show in his career. Perhaps (for me, anyway) his best film is APOLLO 13. Perhaps FROST/NIXON, which warrants exactly that three-and-a-half star rating you awarded it, will now hold that mantle. At the very least, (again as you seemingly believe) the stage adaptation boasts two exceptional performance and a buffo Watergate sequence.