The Reagan Show The Made-for-TV Politics of Ronald Reagan
An award-winning documentary about the original performer-president's role of a lifetime. Teasing apart the spectacle at the heart of finger-on-the-button global diplomacy, the film follows Ronald Reagan's rivalry with charismatic Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.
Chock full of wit and political irony, and told solely through 1980s network news and videotapes created by the Reagan administration itself, THE REAGAN SHOW explores Reagan's made-for-TV approach to politics as he faced down the United States' greatest rival.
Nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the Tribeca Film Festival. Winner of the David Carr Award for Truth in Non-Fiction Filmmaking and nominated for the Bruce Sinofsky Prize for Documentary Feature at the Montclair Film Festival.
"...A provocative and amusing look at President Ronald Reagan's use of television to sell economic plans, missile treaties and, mostly, himself." - John Anderson, Wall Street Journal
"It's like a time capsule prologue to today's world.'" - Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times
Running Time
75 mins
Year
2017
Kanopy ID
2276900
Filmmakers
Features
Languages
Subjects
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Comments (14)
Not a bad doc, but quite an arbitrary selection of issues that leaves out Reagan's administration involvement in Central America and other key issues that marked its time. But still watchable.
“No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public." HL Mencken. "Bigly." DJ Trump
I think many seeing this and criticizing it, may have lived through it and wished for more commentary on the events. But for those who were just children or not yet born, I think seeing just the news footage through the years, is powerful enough. It's a solid introduction to how our modern ...Read more
I think many seeing this and criticizing it, may have lived through it and wished for more commentary on the events. But for those who were just children or not yet born, I think seeing just the news footage through the years, is powerful enough. It's a solid introduction to how our modern politics became so image conscious.
Read lessInteresting documentary with a thorough use of archival footage. Somewhat repetitive -- particularly with the odd mashup of Beethoven Symphony No.7...
What an awful production!
Brilliant story-telling technique. The use of archival footage captures much of the contemporaneous mood. The focus on nuclear arms is spot-on, as that was the biggest life-or-death issue of the day. It misses some of the culture war, AIDS, Central America, and other important issues. And it ...Read more
Brilliant story-telling technique. The use of archival footage captures much of the contemporaneous mood. The focus on nuclear arms is spot-on, as that was the biggest life-or-death issue of the day. It misses some of the culture war, AIDS, Central America, and other important issues. And it skips some of the scariest moments, such as the "begin bombing in 5 minutes" comment or the shootdown of KAL007. But it's long enough.
It's wonderful to recall how Reagan was eventually considered a sellout to the liberals and Soviets, by the eventual founders of the Tea Party and MAGA. Incredible to see how far back this rupture goes.
Read lessthis is great. haunting, eerie, and understated.
Wow! Horrible depiction of perhaps our greatest President. Just ask Matt Lauer, Charlie Rose, or Harvey Weinstein!
This documentary really could've used a narrator.
A bit dull. Seeing Reagan perform for the camera was interesting, but only for few minutes. A lot of presidents have to endure the behind-the-scenes camera opportunities. Everyone knows Reagan had been an actor earlier in his life. The documentary needs more political meat to be worthwhile ...Read more
A bit dull. Seeing Reagan perform for the camera was interesting, but only for few minutes. A lot of presidents have to endure the behind-the-scenes camera opportunities. Everyone knows Reagan had been an actor earlier in his life. The documentary needs more political meat to be worthwhile and needs to tie in the political game with his showmanship more strongly.. A bit too repetitive and blase . I could barely finish the documentary.
Read lessIt's troubling to see how accepted it was for the presidency to be considered as a part to play, or another role in a film, a mouthpiece basically. The role of technology, and improvements in video recording and TV were also crucial to this ongoing performance. It's all kind of disturbing!
D'core
Didn't say much.
Interesting documentary comprised of archival footage of Reagan edited together to form a cohesive story. A film about the importance of the ‘show’ in forming public opinion....one very relevant in today’s political environment. I had heard the film lacked a narrator so was curious how the ...Read more
Interesting documentary comprised of archival footage of Reagan edited together to form a cohesive story. A film about the importance of the ‘show’ in forming public opinion....one very relevant in today’s political environment. I had heard the film lacked a narrator so was curious how the story would be told and I guess with Reagan being so engaging and some excellent news clips, I felt it flowed beautifully.
Read less