1. Nixon (1995)
Going into this you, and I suspect many others, might be expecting a pure indictment of Richard M. Nixon, the man, his politics and his lust for power. What you get instead is an entirely engrossing and human character study of one of the most despised figures in American History. Oliver Stone's Nixon has Shakespearean arc and scope, telling the story of the much maligned 37th President of the United States. In what I consider to be Stone's very best movie, Anthony Hopkins completely becomes immersed as the titular character and it is a travesty that he wasn't even nominated for his work here. The film edits between the Nixon listening to his taped conversations within the corridors of power on the eve of his resignation and his entire life. From growing up dirt poor in California, to his first political forays all the way to his early days as in the oval office. From start to finish it's a schizophrenic, but also oddly fluid piece of filmmaking. What struck me most, however, about Nixon is how it paints the man as both a self-destructive and a victim of his time. He did preside over one of the most violent, tumultuous and progressive socio-political eras in American history. In the end Nixon relies on the viewer to take judgement on the man. He is as complex or as evil as we want and believe him to be. This is also one of the few "Litmus-Test" movies, in that if you believe that you can still be President after seeing all that occurred within this film (without even the advent of social media, mind you) then by all means run for President. For me I'll just stay on the side-lines, thank you very much.