Potus Geeks Summer Reruns: Path to War
Originally posted on April 5, 2013 as part of a series about portrayals of Presidents in movies and television shows entitled The Presidents in Movies.
Path to War is a 2002 HBO movie about President Lyndon Johnson and his trials and tribulations as the Vietnam War became out of control on his watch. The movie starred the prominent British actor Sir Michael Gambon as President Johnson.
The movie shows the Johnson presidency beginning with the high point of its popularity through its spiraling descent as the Vietnam War becomes a quagmire. Johnson must make strategic decisions amid the often conflicting advice from his Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara and other advisers. It shows how Johnson found his domestic policy agenda for the Great Society overtaken by an ever demanding commitment to ending the war. It also portrays Johnson's political skills as he battles with his political foes such as Robert F. Kennedy and Governor George Wallace. Despite support and encouragement from stalwart friends such as Clark Clifford, Johnson realizes his management of the war no longer has the confidence of the American people the movie culminates with Johnson's announcement that he will not seek the nomination of the Democratic party for the the 1968.
Besides Gambon, the cast includes Donald Sutherland as Clark Clifford, Alec Baldwin as Robert McNamara, Bruce McGill as George Ball, James Frain as speech writer Richard N. Goodwin, Felicity Huffman as Lady Bird Johnson, John Aylward as Dean Rusk, Philip Baker Hall as Senator Everett Dirksen, Gary Sinise as George Wallace, Tom Skerritt as General William Westmoreland, Sarah Paulson as Luci Baines Johnson and Curtis L. McClarin as Martin Luther King, Jr. The part of Special Assistant to the President Jack Valenti was played by his son, John Valenti, in the latter's first acting role.
This is one of my favourite movies about a President. I've watched it several times and always enjoy it. The movie is two hours and forty-five minutes long, but it doesn't seem like it. This is another movie that I recommend, especially for anyone old enough to remember the Vietnam War.
Following is an excerpt from the movie, in which Johnson gives announces his decision not to seek re-election:
Path to War is a 2002 HBO movie about President Lyndon Johnson and his trials and tribulations as the Vietnam War became out of control on his watch. The movie starred the prominent British actor Sir Michael Gambon as President Johnson.
The movie shows the Johnson presidency beginning with the high point of its popularity through its spiraling descent as the Vietnam War becomes a quagmire. Johnson must make strategic decisions amid the often conflicting advice from his Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara and other advisers. It shows how Johnson found his domestic policy agenda for the Great Society overtaken by an ever demanding commitment to ending the war. It also portrays Johnson's political skills as he battles with his political foes such as Robert F. Kennedy and Governor George Wallace. Despite support and encouragement from stalwart friends such as Clark Clifford, Johnson realizes his management of the war no longer has the confidence of the American people the movie culminates with Johnson's announcement that he will not seek the nomination of the Democratic party for the the 1968.
Besides Gambon, the cast includes Donald Sutherland as Clark Clifford, Alec Baldwin as Robert McNamara, Bruce McGill as George Ball, James Frain as speech writer Richard N. Goodwin, Felicity Huffman as Lady Bird Johnson, John Aylward as Dean Rusk, Philip Baker Hall as Senator Everett Dirksen, Gary Sinise as George Wallace, Tom Skerritt as General William Westmoreland, Sarah Paulson as Luci Baines Johnson and Curtis L. McClarin as Martin Luther King, Jr. The part of Special Assistant to the President Jack Valenti was played by his son, John Valenti, in the latter's first acting role.
This is one of my favourite movies about a President. I've watched it several times and always enjoy it. The movie is two hours and forty-five minutes long, but it doesn't seem like it. This is another movie that I recommend, especially for anyone old enough to remember the Vietnam War.
Following is an excerpt from the movie, in which Johnson gives announces his decision not to seek re-election:
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