“Reagan,” The Movie.
We all know that the weather is fickle this time of year, but checking WeatherBug for today, it shows a 40% chance of thunderstorms.
Warning: I went to the UVA football game Saturday in Charlottesville when there was allegedly a 10% chance of precipitation and we wound up in a two hour and 18 minute rain-delay.
This forecast means there’s a good chance your Labor Day trip to the beach or cook-out may be a wash out.
But I have good news. It also means you can use the rain as a chance to see “Reagan,” the new biopic starring Dennis Quaid as our 40th president. The 135-minute film was released this weekend.
I saw it Friday and it’s terrific. Within minutes of the opening sequence, Quaid seems to become Ronald Reagan. Yet, his performance is not a mere impersonation. The actor seems to transform into the man who was one of the most popular, iconic presidents in American history. Penelope Ann Miller plays Nancy, and she too, is excellent in the role.
At its heart this is the love story of Nancy and Ron, which many of us found treacly and contrived while they were in the White House, but which, by all accounts was a relationship of genuine devotion, respect and unshakable affection.
It’s also the story of Reagan’s war on communism. That battle began during his term as president of the Screen Actors Guild, continued through Reagan’s governorship of California and his two terms in Washington.
The movie is narrated by Jon Voight, who plays an aging KGB agent whose job it was to watch Reagan during his union days. The agent repeatedly warned Soviet leadership that Reagan was dangerous, but they refused to take him seriously.
It’s an interesting theatrical device.
History has shown that it wasn’t just Reagan, but the triumvirate of Reagan, Pope John Paul II and Margaret Thatcher that brought down the former Soviet Union.
“Reagan” is more than just an ode to a consequential president. It’s a timely reminder that not long ago American politics wasn’t a blood sport. There was a time when political rivals could be friends. No viewer will watch “Reagan” without feeling a certain wistfulness for those days.
More than that, though, the film highlights the insidious ways that communists tried to ruin our country. It’s impossible not to look at the double-talk coming from the Marxists leading the Democrat Party to realize they haven’t given up.
In fact, they’re closer to power than ever.
Don’t buy a ticket to “Reagan” for a political lesson, however. Go because it’s entertaining.
The final scene, when Reagan is back at his California ranch and learns he has Alzheimer’s, is moving. The former president literally rides his horse into the sunset while the soundtrack features Clint Black with a haunting version of John Denver’s “Country Roads.”
Not a dry eye in the movie theater when the lights came on Friday night.
See it. Take your kids if they’re pre-teens or older. They may learn something.
So will you.
