New at BOP: Review: Matrix Resurrections Movie Review: Moonfall Movie Reviews: Scream The #1 Movie in America November Forecast The Many Saints of Newark October Forecast New Trivia Question All site updates Share & Save   Tweet Print this column

5. Charlie Wilson’s War

What turned out to be Nichols’ last film is also one of his most underrated. A movie about the perils of war and hubris made at a time when people were either no listening or somehow not understanding that concept, Nichols breathes fresh air into the languishing socio-political drama (much like he did, in my opinion, in his President Clinton satire in Primary Colors). The movie is witty and incisive. It helps, of course, that the script was penned by the brilliant Aaron Sorkin. On top of cutting dialogue helped by expert camerawork, it also features a Nichols signature: a star-studded cast that he navigates and unites marvelously. Indeed, the trio of Oscar winners featured (Julia Roberts, Tom Hanks, and Philip Seymour Hoffman) turn in impressive performances as mostly unsympathetic characters.

But the best thing about the movie is arguably the subtlety of the message and lesson it teaches the audiences (that mostly, sadly, did not care to listen): America’s role in the conflict in Afghanistan and the subsequent developments that led to 9/11. None of that is mentioned overtly, but coming out in 2007 when the country was still divided about our proper role in the post 9/11 world, Nichols made sure to add his thoughtful opinion to the conversation.

4. Silkwood

Another of Nichols’ Best Director nominations came in the 1980s thriller drama starring Meryl Streep and Cher, telling the story of a woman who became a nuclear power whistleblower and paid a heavy price for her audacity. Once more unafraid to tackle difficult but relevant subjects, Nichols’ mastery is on display here by the way he uses technical aspects of the film, such as lighting and sound/score, to create building suspense. At the same time, he successfully conveys the ennui and helplessness that the characters feel at times during their mundane lives by slowing down the tempo of the camera and the action overall.

Once more, the acting that Nichols extracts from his cast is also notable. Although no one is surprised that Streep did an outstanding job (and received one of her many nominations for it), Cher was also nominated and arguably began her own little “Oscar story” with Silkwood, culminating in her win a few years later for Moonstruck, a much more campy and trite performance than the heartfelt if melodramatic portrayal in Silkwood. The imprint of Nichols can be seen, however, because of his ability to tackle controversial subjects and get even the most reticent audience member to agree with his point of view. In the end, there is no doubt that one should be firmly on Karen Silkwood’s side in the controversy.

3. Working Girl

Perhaps a guilty pleasure of mine, Nichols’ next Best Director nominated movie (and, indeed, one of 1988’s five Best Picture nominees), is Working Girl. The movie begins with a now classic scene through the New York skyline to the backdrop of Carly Simon’s Best Original Song Winner, “Let the River Run.” By the end, one is left with one of the best romantic comedies of the 1980s, one that again evokes a lot of emotional sympathy for its characters - not in the trite way that many an Oscar winner does, but because the characters are real and Nichols makes us feel as if we know them intimately.

And to revisit the by now usual theme: the cast does some of its best career work ever even though in this case it isn’t exactly impressive as it was for Silkwood or Charlie Wilson. Thus, Melanie Griffith, Sigourney Weaver, and Harrison Ford all turn in believable turns as their respective characters - which are purposefully clichéd while three-dimensional at the same time.

Overall, however, the brilliance of this movie lies in how Nichols successfully captured a lot of what the 1980s were about: the hairdos and outfits, yes, but also the confluence of several different pulls in women’s lives as the possibility of a successful career finally began to become a reachable reality for most women in America.

Continued:       1       2       3