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Today’s DVDs: Frost/Nixon, The Wrestler
The best bets for today’s DVDs are two outstanding Oscar contenders.
Frost/Nixon: The story behind the talking-head television interviews between President Nixon and British talk show host David Frost may not seem like an exciting story for a movie, but in the hands of writer Peter Morgan and director Ron Howard, the film is intensely fascinating and even kinetic. The performances, especially by the leads Frank Langella and Michael Sheen, are riveting. Howard gets too little credit for his direction; this film is a bracing reminder that at his best, he is one of the most confident, intelligent directors we’ve got. This is his best film since Apollo 13. GRADE: A
Notorious: This biopic of the Notorious BIG earned some decent notices, but never broke out beyond its first week. DVD is where it will really take off.
The Wrestler: I’ve never been any kind of a wrestling fan, so that this movie moved me as much as it did speaks volumes about how effective it is. Mickey Rourke deserves every pound of praise he has received (including an Oscar nomination for Best Actor) as a once great wrestler who let his personal life turn into shambles. Director Darren Aronofsky uses a gritty, fly-on-the-wall style that makes the film feel lived-in and utterly convincing. GRADE: A
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Comments
By RAJ
April 27, 2009 5:20 PM | Link to this
I heard all the hype about Slumdog and The Wrestler, but Frost/Nixon was a great movie and I think it should have won the Oscar instead of Slumdog (I hate subtitled films). And Mickey Rourke WAS all that in The Wrestler. He really was that character.