Somewhere between Oliver Stone's W. and Adam McKay's 2018 vehicle Vice, lies Reagan, a biopic that's not as dialogue-driven as the former and less spoof-like than the latter. Reagan, well it's about Ronald Reagan (duh), the 40th prez of the United States and a former actor to boot. Told in one 135-minute flashback sequence through the eyes and ears of fictional KGB agent Viktor Petrovich (played by Jon Voight, acting like Jon Voight but with a Russian accent), Reagan chronicles Ronny's life chronologically, from his childhood to his stint in Tinseltown to his presidency to his horse riding retirement. "Get in the game, run for office". Oh you betcha.
Reagan is directed by Sean McNamara, a thirty-year-plus veteran of stuff anywhere between fantasy comedies (Casper Meets Wendy) to biographical dramas (Soul Surfer) to last year's On a Wing and a Prayer. I mean you could say a lot about Sean's films but you could never reveal that they're boring. McNamara injects Reagan with a lot of energy and a sense of urgency as he whisks you from one historical set piece to the next. Instead of piling on the schmaltz and possible sentimental sludge, helmer McNamara fashions Reagan into a rather hard-nosed drama (pun intended) with a little dry jocularity, some biting satire, and some goofy self-deprecation. Check out the insertion of the music video "Land of Confusion" and you'll see what I mean.
Now you're probably wondering who plays Ronald Reagan and well, I'm gonna tell ya. It's Dennis Quaid don't you know and this might be one of the best performances of his career (along with '79's bicycle flick, Breaking Away). Quaid looks like Ron from the profile side and on occasion, gets the mannerisms and facial expressions just right. Heck, he winks to audience but in a good way, as most of his line readings of speeches and soliloquies crackle while running wild. He is supported effectively by a cast of knowns (Voight mentioned earlier, Robert Davi, Kevin Dillon, C. Thomas Howell) playing anyone from film exec Jack Warner to Leonid Brezhnev to Republican Caspar Weinberger. In the hands of another filmmaker, Reagan might come off as a snoozing slog, maybe a wiki page entry with bad, paint-drying sensibilities. With Sean McNamara however, you have capable, lightning-quick editing, solid, crisp cinematography, and stylish, montage clips of good old Dutch getting his trouper on. A win for this "Gipper".
Written by Jesse Burleson
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