The year is 1974, and the Watergate scandal is in full swing. 18½ minutes of Nixon’s tapes are missing, but one White House transcriber, Connie (Willa Fitzgerald), working for the United States Office of Management and Budget, obtains the only copy of that missing 18½ minutes. Connie is now thrown directly into the middle of Watergate, confused at how to proceed. With the help of a new confidant, Paul (John Magaro), they must determine their next steps, but life is becoming dangerous.
I like just about everything about 18½ , but the thing that impresses me the most is the dialogue. There are a series of incredibly intelligent individuals sprinkled throughout the course of 18½, and both Paul and Connie are the cream of the crop in their respective fields. There’s the potential with characters of this caliber that the dialogue be inaccessible. Throughout 18½ , however, the dialogue is both intelligent and accessible. With the writing being this well developed, the film becomes incredibly inviting from the opening moments. The cast and crew are continuously clear about their purpose, and every line is delivered beautifully, with passion and accuracy.
I’m not sure that viewers will go into 18½ expecting what they will eventually get. There are plot points that spoil themselves before they ever come to be, but there are instances in the film that I’m not sure viewers would have considered a possibility prior to watching Writer-Director Dan Mirvish’s film. While every piece of the film stems from the same storyline, there are a number of aspects of the film that sort of exist separate from one another. I’m not sure that the multiple offshoots of the narrative ever really come together, but they exist, and each aspect possesses something interesting–something worth investing in. The ability of Writers Mirvish and Daniel Moya to create a series of smaller storylines within the main storyline (all worth something) is incredible. I’m genuinely impressed by what this writing team is able to create in 18½, because from the opening moments of the film I was invested.
The film’s two leads, Fitzgerald and Magaro, do a wonderful job of letting emotions rise to the surface, to become the leading aspect of this thriller. I know nothing about Fitzgerald, and the only knowledge I had of Magaro prior to 18½ was his performance in The Many Saints of Newark (in which I sincerely struggled with him). Knowing nothing or having a less-than-favorable opinion of the actors opened the door for them to intrigue me–and they do this from the film’s start. The two have beautiful chemistry in every facet of the film, and they bring this layered and entertaining story to life in ways that I had never expected. I’ve used the word “impressed” so many times throughout the course of this review, but I can’t help but to use it again, because almost everything about this film was so incredibly riveting. I’m impressed with what these two bring to the table, and without them 18½ doesn’t find success.
18½ is a riveting story about the Watergate scandal, but it dives deep into the toll that it took on the outsiders looking in, the others involved in the White House day-to-day, and the way in which the world views politics and politicians. The many moving parts appeal to a wide audience, and the writing of both Moya and Mirvish is some of the most intriguing I’ve seen in some time. 18½ pulls at the heartstrings, tests viewers’ intelligence, and delivers a compelling story that should appeal to the masses. 18½ is a beautiful film, and every step of the way I found something new to woo me.
Directed by Dan Mirvish.
Written by Daniel Moya & Dan Mirvish.
Starring Willa Fitzgerald, John Magaro, Gina Kreiezmar, Marija Juliette Abney, Lloyd Kaufman, Richard Kind, Sullivan Jones, John Cryer, Alanna Saunders, Ted Raimi, Claire Saunders, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Catherine Curtin, etc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐½/10
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