On a lighter note, Mother Jones hails Bill Murray as "far and away the best Franklin D. Roosevelt in movie history." Here's the trailer.
Seems FDR has drawn cinematic attention as of late, including this oddball movie with Barry Bostwick as the "American Badass!" Jon Voight played the President in Pearl Harbor. John Lithgow played him in 1994 movie, When Lions Roared. Ralph Bellamy assumed his character in the television mini-series War and Remembrance and in the 1960 movie, Sunrise at Campobello. Edward Hermann also played FDR twice in television movies from the late 70s. He was even portrayed by Nikolai Cherkasov in a 1949 Soviet film, The Victors and the Vanquished (11:40 min. mark). The earliest known portrayal is by Al Richardson in a 1937 Three Stooges' movie, Cash and Carry.
My wife and I saw this over the weekend. It doesn't try to accomplish all that much, is fairly humorous at times, at other times reminiscent of a Hallmark Movie. Talk of Murray's performance being Oscar worthy is very debatable. Although as I must remind myself, The Hurt Locker won a Best Picture Oscar a few years ago, so anything is possible.
ReplyDeleteIn Cash and Carry you only saw "FDR"from behind sitting at his desk but he sounded like FDR and the Stooges all saluted him at the end.
ReplyDeleteIn Hyde Park on the Hudson you see FDR from behind early in the movie. He's getting a handjob in the front seat of his car. Not exactly a star turn.
ReplyDeleteHe was known to be a bit of a letch ; )
ReplyDeleteDespite MJ's glowing review, I see Bill Murray didn't get an Oscar nomination.
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