Thursday, December 04, 2008
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LEADERSHIP LESSONS FROM “FROST/NIXON”
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Posted by:
Michael Medved at
11:50 AM
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The riveting new film “Frost/Nixon” presents a surprisingly sympathetic and richly relevant portrait of the 37th President of the United States. In his eminently Oscar-worthy performance, Frank Langella portrays Richard Nixon as smart, commanding, vulnerable and, above all, fiercely formidable. In a series of brilliantly re-staged, historic TV interviews with British talk show host David Frost, the resigned former President makes the ultimately heart-breaking admission that he “let down” the American people. In providing context for this searing moment, the movie makes one crucial omission: not emphasizing the landslide dimensions of Nixon’s re-election victory just five years before the interviews, when the Republican Nixon carried 49 of 50 states. This background connects to the most important message of the film for President-elect Obama and for us: popularity, image and political skill are fleeting, but character and its impact are permanent
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