The score was composed by John Williams, who previously worked with Stone on Born on the Fourth of July and JFK.

Reception

Box office

In its opening weekend, Nixon grossed a total of $2.2 million in 514 theaters in the United States and Canada. The film grossed a total of $13.6 million in the United States and Canada, less than its $44 million budget.

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes Nixon has a 76% approval rating, based reviews from 63 critics, with an average score of 6.8/10. The site's consensus states: "Much like its subject's time in office, Nixon might have ended sooner—but what remains is an engrossing, well-acted look at the rise and fall of a fascinating political figure." Metacritic gave the film a score of 66 based on 22 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a grade "B" on scale of A+ to F.

Two days before the film was released in theaters, the Richard Nixon Library and birthplace in Yorba Linda, California issued a statement on behalf of the Nixon family, calling parts of the film "reprehensible" and that it was designed to "defame and degrade President and Mrs. Nixon's memories in the mind of the American public." This statement was based on a published copy of the script. Ebert also placed the film on his list of the top ten films of the year. Janet Maslin from The New York Times praised Anthony Hopkins' performance and "his character's embattled outlook and stiff, hunched body language with amazing skill."

Mick LaSalle in the San Francisco Chronicle, felt that "the problem here isn't accuracy. It's absurdity. Hopkins' exaggerated portrayal of Nixon is the linchpin of a film that in its conception and presentation consistently veers into camp". Richard Corliss, in his review for Time, also had a problem with Hopkins' portrayal: "Hopkins, though, is a failure. He finds neither the timbre of Nixon's plummy baritone, with its wonderfully false attempts at intimacy, nor the stature of a career climber who, with raw hands, scaled the mountain and was still not high or big enough." Peter Travers of Rolling Stone wrote: "It's gripping psychodrama — just don't confuse Nixon with history."

Accolades

{|class="wikitable"

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! Award

! Category

! Recipients

! Result

! Ref.

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| rowspan=4| Academy Awards || Best Actor || Anthony Hopkins || || rowspan=4|

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| Best Supporting Actress || Joan Allen ||

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| Best Original Screenplay || Stephen J. Rivele, Oliver Stone & Christopher Wilkinson ||

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| Best Original Score || John Williams ||

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| BAFTA Award || Best Actress in a Supporting Role || Joan Allen || ||

|-

| Golden Globe Awards || Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama || Anthony Hopkins || ||

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| rowspan=3|Screen Actors Guild Awards || Outstanding Cast in a Motion Picture || Joan Allen, Brian Bedford, Powers Boothe, Kevin Dunn, <br/> Fyvush Finkel, Annabeth Gish, Tony Goldwyn, Larry Hagman, <br/> Ed Harris, Edward Herrmann, Anthony Hopkins, Bob Hoskins, <br/> Madeline Kahn, E. G. Marshall, David Paymer, Paul Sorvino, <br/> David Hyde Pierce, Mary Steenburgen, J. T. Walsh, James Woods || || rowspan=3|

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| Outstanding Actor in a Leading Role || Anthony Hopkins ||

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| Outstanding Actress in a Leading Role || Joan Allen ||

|-

|}

Entertainment Weekly ranked Nixon No. 40 on their "50 Best Biopics Ever" list and one of the 25 "Powerful Political Thrillers".

Home media

The theatrical cut of the film was released on DVD on June 15, 1999. A director's cut was released on DVD as part of an Oliver Stone boxset in 2001, running 212 mins and including 28 minutes of previously deleted scenes. Much of the added time consists of two scenes: one in which Nixon meets with Central Intelligence Agency director Richard Helms (played by Sam Waterston) and another on Tricia Nixon's wedding day, where J. Edgar Hoover persuades Nixon to install the taping system in the Oval Office. The Director's Cut was released individually on DVD in 2002. The Director's Cut was re-released by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment (branded as Hollywood Pictures Home Entertainment) on DVD and Blu-ray Disc on August 19, 2008, with the first anamorphic widescreen version of the film in North America.

References

  • White House Museum - How accurately did the movie recreate the architecture and floor plan of the actual White House? (Review)
  • Salon.com Stone interview