177: Reagan (with David Weigel)

Junk Filter

Veteran national politics reporter for Semafor David Weigel returns to the show for a discussion of the new conservative political biopic Reagan, starring Dennis Quaid as The Great Communicator, or as he was known in Russia, The Crusader, for the film is told from the perspective of a former KGB agent (Jon Voight) who identified him early on as the man who would someday defeat the Soviet Union with facts and logic.

There’s a lot to unpack with Reagan, filmed in 2020 during the pandemic and only being released now. This film represents how much the Conservative movement has changed in the Trump era and since this film was shot, which leads us into a discussion about how Reagan has been somewhat diminished in the modern Republican Party, and how this political hagiography is somewhat out of step with the times. Why is a film about this significant historical figure such a low-budget, clumsy affair populated with “stars” like Kevin Sorbo and Robert Davi (as Leonid Brezhnev!) and told from the perspective of defeated Soviet spies, with a new Bob Dylan recording in the end credits?

Follow Dave Weigel on Twitter and Bluesky, and subscribe to his twice-weekly newsletter “Americana” on Semafor.

Trailer for Reagan (Sean McNamara, 2024)