Nixon, abbreviated.

Secret Honor. Before the opening credits, Robert Altman beats us over the head with a fictional stick. Using white on black scrolling text, he emphasizes the fic-fic-fictional nature of this character study of Richard Nixon. But not the real Nixon. I mean, he's real, but not as he's portrayed in the film. It is non-non-fiction, based on actual events, but is not actually actual, etc.

Bobby A. was rather presumptuous to think that anyone would care enough about the film to question its accuracy. Its sequence of events from minute one to minute fifteen lopes through a half-decent Nixon stand-in's choppy movement from tape recorder to scotch decanter to scotch bottle to security cameras and back again. Mr. Nixon stutters and awkwardly gestures his way through frantic speech that one might think would hold the viewer's interest. I fell into a multi-minute coma before the image of a gun brought some color back to my face.

Then nothing happened. Again.

I didn't finish it, didn't need to, and wish the gun would have gotten some action before I pressed stop.