Long weekends are good, but sometimes I have absolutely no idea what to do with them. And if it’s really hot outside, I’m definitely at a loss. This Fourth of July is easy though. Earlier this year Cold War published a film festival for President’s Day, celebrating movies and documentaries that are either about American Cold War Presidents or that feature them. Given all the controversy (almost hysteria) surrounding the upcoming Presidential election in the US, it seems logical — and even patriotic — to revisit the offerings. So here goes.
A few notes: Links, for the most part, are to each film’s trailer. A few links may take you to Amazon for purchase of DVD’s, etc. As you know, Cold War is an Amazon affiliate and we receive a small commission on anything you buy when you click our link. You can be sure, though, that you’ll never pay more than you would if you went straight to their site.
Movie descriptions are drawn chiefly from Wikipedia and Amazon. If I don’t mention a specific streaming site, the film is available on Amazon Prime Video but, as you know, most movies available on Amazon are also on iTunes. Many of those below are available on YouTube as well — some for free. Be sure to check your favorite platform.
It’s time to start watching. Enjoy!!
Harry Truman
Give ‘em hell Harry was controversial at times, and one of his most controversial actions was his firing of General Douglas MacArthur for insubordination. You can learn all about this in the 1977 movie MacArthur starring Gregory Peck.
If you’d like to learn more about Truman the man, you’re looking for Truman, a 1995 American biographical drama, based on David McCullough’s Pulitzer Prize-winning 1992 book, Truman. The film centers on the president’s humble beginnings, his rise to the presidency, World War II, and his decision to use the first atomic bomb. The film’s tagline is “It took a farmer’s hand to shape a nation.” If you’re interested in watching this movie, you’ll have to buy the DVD as the movie is not available for streaming. It aired on HBO on September 9, 1995.
Dwight D. Eisenhower (IKE)
Ike: Countdown to D-Day is a 2004 American made-for-TV historical war drama that originally aired on A&E. Tom Selleck portrays General Eisenhower in the 90 days leading up to D-Day, the largest invasion of World War II. This is not an action film, instead it deals with the decisions made by Ike and the pressures brought to bear on him personally.
John F. Kennedy (JFK)
Movies about the Kennedy years are plentiful because of the Cuban Missile Crisis and, later, his assassination.
PT 109, the story of Kennedy’s World War II exploits, was the first commercial theatrical film about a sitting U.S. president released while he was still in office. Starring Cliff Robertson as Kennedy, the movie was released 5 months before the president’s assassination.
Oliver Stone’s controversial hit, JFK, stars Kevin Costner as New Orleans District Attorney, James Garrison, who tries to uncover the truth behind John F. Kennedy’s assassination. JFK was nominated for eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture. It won for Best Cinematography and Best Film Editing.
More interested in Kennedy’s ‘foreign policy chops’? You might like Thirteen Days a 2000 historical political thriller that dramatizes the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, seen from the perspective of the US political leadership. Once again Kevin Costner stars, this time as top White House assistant Kenny O’Donnell. Bruce Greenwood portrays President John F. Kennedy. While the film carries the same title as the 1969 book Thirteen Days by former Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, it is actually based on the 1997 book, The Kennedy Tapes: Inside the White House During the Cuban Missile Crisis, by Ernest R. May and Philip D. Zelikow.
Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ)
Path to War deals with the Vietnam War as seen through the eyes of President Johnson and his cabinet members. It begins in January 1965 with LBJ at the Inaugural Ball and ends on March 31, 1968, when he announces to the nation that he will not run for re-election. The movie is available on MAX.
LBJ is a 2016 Rob Reiner film that chronicles the beginning of the Johnson presidency following the assassination of JFK. Starring Woody Harrelson as Johnson, its focus is on the challenges the new president faces as he confronts enemies within his own party and his own White House.
Richard Nixon
There are just about as many movies about Nixon as about JFK. First, you may want to watch Frost/Nixon, David Frost’s historic interview with Richard Nixon, occurring three years after Watergate. Good luck finding it! It doesn’t seem to be streaming nor is the DVD available on Amazon. Ron Howard’s 2009 film (of the same name) is available. While not my first choice, the movie was highly regarded,receiving five Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Director. Watch the trailer for it here.
Next there’s another film by Oliver Stone titled Nixon. You might remember that Stone did three movies about US Presidents. According to Wikipedia, this movie portrays Nixon “as a complex and, in many respects, admirable, though deeply flawed, person. Nixon begins with a disclaimer that the film is ‘an attempt to understand the truth […] based on numerous public sources and on an incomplete historical record.’”
Secret Honor revolves around a disgraced Richard Nixon restlessly pacing in the study of his New Jersey mansion in the late 1970s. “Armed with a loaded revolver, a bottle of Scotch whisky and a running tape recorder, while surrounded by closed circuit television cameras, he spends the next ninety minutes in a long monologue recalling with rage, suspicion, sadness and disappointment his controversial life and career.” You can watch the whole movie on YouTube.
If you prefer traditional Hollywood blockbuster films, All the President’s Men (1976) and/or The Post (2017) may be just right for you. All the President’s Men is about the Watergate scandal that brought down Nixon’s presidency while The Post is based on a true story about a government cover-up and the fight over civil liberties. They are both available to rent on iTunes.
Gerald Ford
A Time to Heal is a 20 minute documentary about the life and times of Gerald Ford. You can watch it on YouTube here.
President Ford’s wife Betty was probably a better known and more popular figure than her husband because of the many trials she faced while in the White House – breast cancer, problems with alcohol, and prescription drug abuse. The Betty Ford Story is based on her life. Mrs. Ford is played bt Gena Rowlands. Eventually, she confronts her problems, leading to the founding of the Betty Ford Center, a chemical dependency treatment facility. You can watch the film on YouTube.
Jimmy Carter
Here’s a fun one! Jimmy Carter: Rock and Roll President has 5 stars on Amazon. It’s a documentary that traces how popular music helped propel Jimmy Carter to the White House, and the significant role that music has played in President Carter’s life and work overall.
Want something more serious? Try Jimmy Carter Man From Plains. This film highlights the book tour for Carter’s non-fiction book Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid about how peace can be achieved in the Middle East. The film won three awards at the 2007 Venice Film Festival, and it’s included with Amazon Prime Video.
Ronald Reagan
Watch the PBS American Experience series on Reagan: An American Life. Click here for info.
For insight into the attempt on Reagan’s life by John Hinckley Jr., you can stream The Day Reagan Was Shot – another Oliver Stone film. The film depicts a media frenzy, a divided White House cabinet and staff with little control, and a fictional threat of international crisis. The full movie is on Internet Archive here.
As with JFK and Nixon, a Google search (or a search on Amazon Prime Video) will turn up many more options. Alternatively, President Reagan’s life as a film star prior to his presidency means that you can spend the whole weekend going retro if you like. For a listing of his 10 best movies ranked by Slash Film click here.
George H.W. Bush
41 is a documentary that explores the life and careers of George H.W. Bush, the 41st President of the United States. From running the country to skydiving, this film paints an endearing and enlightening portrait. It’s on Max and Amazon Prime Video.
You can also watch clips from the PBS American Experience series on Bush here. If you’re intrigued, a free trial for PBS Documentaries is available on Amazon Prime.
That’s all for now. It’s time to lean back and relax. There are plenty of good movies here. Have a wonderful Fourth of July.
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Featured photograph titled Movie Night Party by Randy von Liski.
The Oval Office replica on the 10th floor of the LBJ Presidential Library duplicates President Lyndon B. Johnson’s office in the White House at 7/8th scale. The office looks exactly as it did during Johnson’s presidency,
A frequent television watcher during his presidency, Lyndon Johnson had a console built for the Oval Office containing three television sets so he could watch all three network news broadcasts at once. He also used the sets during time of crisis, such as the Arab-Israeli Six-Day War in June 1967.
Source: The White House Historical Association
