In 1974, a White House transcriber is thrust into the Watergate scandal when she obtains the only copy of the infamous 18½ minute gap in Nixon’s tapes.
“18½” opens with an ominous score, a necessary device for a story such as this that takes a potentially fresh look at the Watergate scandal. The plot centers around the infamous missing 18½ minute stretch of tape – blamed on Rose Mary Woods, Nixon’s fiercely loyal secretary since 1951. Much to the amazement of Connie Lashley (Willa Fitzgerald) – a low-level GS-2 government transcriber – the conversation between Richard Nixon (Bruce Campbell), Bob Haldeman (Jon Cryer), and Al Haig (Ted Raimi) turns up on the tail end of brief OMB (Office of Management and Budget) meeting. Though the actual content of the tape has never been discovered, it forms the basis for this fictional account.
Willa Fitzgerald may resonate with viewers more as Roscoe in the recently released “Reacher” series on Amazon Prime. In both instances, she delivers exemplary performances. Connie meets up with Paul Marrow (John Magaro), an ambitious reporter trying to get a scoop on the unfolding Watergate scandal even in 1974, nearly two years after the actual break-in.
Connie possesses a near-photographic memory, which she demonstrates by repeating verbatim the day’s specials at a local Chesapeake Bay restaurant. She is a no-nonsense Capitol Building employee intent on not becoming a hapless whistleblower with no future after the fact. Marrow wants the story but has enough wits about him to know what’s at stake concerning his career and personal safety. They agree to pose as a recently married couple looking for a room at the nearby Silver Sands Motel to listen to the recording discretely. Richard Kind plays Jack, the Silver Sands Motel manager, who wears an eyepatch and appears to serve mainly as comic relief. “I’m not for everybody,” he tells the two as they depart for their room.
When Connie tries to play the tape for Paul, they discover the machine doesn’t work. They figure someone staying at the Silver Sands must have a player, so they set off to query other guests nearby.
Most of the scenes in “18½” contain several opportunities for paranoia. A lone guy on a small fishing boat, visible from the motel window, may or may not be trying to listen in on their conversation. Some hippies on the beach sporting a portable 8-track player denouncing corporate greed and undue pollical influence – oddly symbolized by the multiple references to Wonder Bread. An unidentified man leaving a phone message at the desk for the couple that just checked in – presumably Connie and Paul. An emotive biracial couple named Samuel (Vondie Curtis Hall) and Lena (Catherine Curtin) are in the cabin farther down the shoreline.
The hippie leader, Barry (Sullivan Jones), strums his guitar and rails against capitalism. Though tinged with cliché, his diatribe nonetheless resonates in today’s age of inflation reminiscent of the Nixon era, combined with record corporate profits – both still serving to oppress working folks, the downtrodden proletariat. Paul and Connie at least have some fun at the prospect of joining up with the flower children as they wander on, searching for a reel-to-reel player.
When they first meet, Samuel and Lena enthusiastically invite the faux newlyweds inside to relieve the boredom while boasting of their 30-plus year marriage. The older couple then oddly shift the discussion to the fight against fascism in Europe during World War II. The more they speak, the more suspicious they seem. Sam and Lena, for example, know a lot about the absurdity of Rose Mary Woods accidentally erasing White House tapes, given the physical contortions that would have been required to do so.
As they are peppered with bizarre verbal meanderings throughout the evening, Connie and Paul eye the other couple’s reel-to-reel with envy. Concocting a cover story on-the-fly about taping their marriage proposal, they devise to borrow the player overnight, finally allowing them to listen to the damning 18½ minutes. Suffice it to say that the content of the missing recording only serves to incriminate Nixon and his inner circle further.
Viewers will not be surprised to learn that director Dan Mirvish mentored under Robert Altman, as the influence is quite apparent. From the natural lighting to the overlapping conversations, the famed director’s techniques infuse the production from start to finish. At the end of the day, however, things just don’t come together very well, with far more subterfuge and suggestion than substance or logic. While “18½” contains much potential, the contrived and confusing turn of events leads to a decidedly unsatisfying letdown as the closing credits roll – perhaps a bit too soon and in want of additional elaboration.
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