Italian shoes with no laces

Frost/Nixon was premièred for London audience at the London Film Festival in November 2008. I missed it. Richard Nixon has been of great interest to me. I had written a 20-page article about the foreign policies of the US during Richard Nixon's presidency between 1969-1974. The controversial Watergate brought Nixon down from the presidency, but the interviews held with Nixon after his presidency had caught little attention from me. Frost/Nixon is a brilliant film, set around the interview attempt of an English journalist David Frost with Richard Nixon in the spring of 1977.

Richard Nixon was an ambitious lawyer who was brought up under hardships. He was Eisenhower's Vice-President but when he ran for his own presidential campaign in 1960, he had JFK up against him. The first-ever broadcast presidential debate in the US TV history brought the bright young JFK against and old, experienced but uncharming Nixon. Nixon would try his chance again only in 1968 after having lost to JFK in 1960 but he would forever keep the depression of his uncharming personality. He would, in stead, build a self-confidence, that of an army man, made of steel but fragile with regards to its foundations.

David Frost was an ambitious journalist who is portrayed as a young, charming, not-so-intellectual but a successful talk-show host in the film. After discovering Nixon was pardoned by his successor, President Gerald Ford, Frost decides to challenge Nixon on a TV interview. Also fuelled by one of his researchers he hires for the job, and against the lack of financial support for his project, Frost is determined to put Nixon down to his knees in front of the TV audience and snatch a 'public apology' from him. Ford wanted Nixon to feel as challenged and overwhelmed as JFK made him feel back in the early 1960's. The tensions between the two, the portrayal of the ambitions of the two men, the representation of the 1970's USA are cleverly displayed in this film.

A small but remarkable detail of the film is Nixon's obsession with the Italian style shoes without laces that Frost is wearing. Although Nixon is comforted by his personal adviser that Italian shoes without laces are very effeminate and that they would not suit Nixon, the audience is kept on their nerves with the symbolism of Nixon's insecurity over his own appearance with the shoe detail...

Today I met a friend from high school, M. and her mother at the Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University for a lovely lunch that inspired a lot about issues dealing with urban policies. As the usual case with earlier generations advicing on the younger ones, the conversation came to a point where young ones like us are being looked upon to bring important change to the current discussions. At some point M. reminded that there is way too many people these days who claim they 'want to be Prime Ministers or some other important people'. She gave the example of a friend of hers to conclude:

"Huh! You think he can make a Prime Minister... with those Italian shoes of his?!"

I dedicate this text to M., and advice her to watch Frost/Nixon as soon as possible! =)