Good idea, but a
good bit short of Clueless.
This movie presents a slapstick satire of the fall of
President Richard M. Nixon in the Watergate scandal. Two ditzy 15-year-old blondes ala Clueless
become inextricably involved in exposing "Dick" as a mean man who is
unworthy of being the President. From wacky teen crush to revenge, these girls ultimately
become the source for most of the unsolved mysteries about Watergate. There were quite a
few funny moments, but the execution was neither dark nor clever enough to engage adults
nor wacky enough to engage the younger set. This kind of satire works well in short skits,
but it requires more depth of story and plausibility to carry a full movie. The
characterization of Tricky Dick (Dan Hedaya) was at times quite good and at times awkward.
It was delightful to see some of the key characters from the Nixon era satirized.
Though this film strikes at one tragic figure in particular, it does generalize the
inherent problem with dishonesty in all of our presidents and their cohorts.
