Story of movie Path To War : Path to War is a 2002 American biographical television film, produced by HBO and directed by John Frankenheimer. It was the final film (theatrical or made-for-TV) that was directed by Frankenheimer, who died seven weeks after the film debuted on HBO. It was also the last film produced by Edgar J. Scherick during his lifetime—he died seven months after its initial airing on HBO.
| Path to War | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Biographical television film |
| Written by | Daniel Giat |
| Directed by | John Frankenheimer |
| Starring | (first billed only) Michael Gambon Donald Sutherland Alec Baldwin Bruce McGill James Frain Felicity Huffman Frederic Forrest John Aylward Philip Baker Hall Tom Skerritt Diana Scarwid Sarah Paulson Gerry Becker Peter Jacobson |
| Theme music composer | Gary Chang |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Cary Brokaw John Frankenheimer Edgar J. Scherick Howard Dratch |
| Producer(s) | Guy Riedel Shirley Davis |
| Cinematography | Stephen Goldblatt Nancy Schreiber |
| Editor(s) | Richard Francis-Bruce |
| Running time | 165 minutes |
| Production company(s) | Avenue Pictures Edgar J. Scherick Associates HBO |
| Distributor | HBO |
| Release | |
| Original network | HBO |
| Original release | May 18, 2002 |
Screenplay
The film deals directly with the Vietnam War as seen through the eyes of United States President Lyndon B. Johnson and his cabinet members. The starting events portrayed begin in 1965.
The film stars Michael Gambon as President Johnson, Alec Baldwin as Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara and Donald Sutherland as presidential advisor Clark M. Clifford, who succeeds McNamara as Secretary of Defense.
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Michael Gambon | Lyndon B. Johnson |
| Donald Sutherland | Clark M. Clifford |
| Alec Baldwin | Robert McNamara |
| Bruce McGill | George Ball |
| James Frain | Richard N. Goodwin |
| Felicity Huffman | Lady Bird Johnson |
| Frederic Forrest | Earle Wheeler |
| John Aylward | Dean Rusk |
| Philip Baker Hall | Everett Dirksen |
| Gary Sinise | George C. Wallace |
| Tom Skerritt | William Westmoreland |
| Cliff De Young | McGeorge Bundy |
| Chris Eigeman | Bill Moyers |
| John Valenti | Jack Valenti |
| Gerry Becker | Walt Rostow |
| Sarah Paulson | Luci Baines Johnson |
| Francis Guinan | Nicholas Katzenbach |
| Curtis L. McClarin | Martin Luther King, Jr. |
| Randy Oglesby | John Stennis |
| Patricia Kalember | Margaret Craig McNamara |
| Diana Scarwid | Marny Clifford |
| Madison Mason | John McCone |
| Gina-Raye Carter | Lynda Bird Johnson |
| Robert Cicchini | Joseph Califano |
Maxwell D. Taylor is the American ambassador to South Vietnam. Norman Morrison is a pacifist who immolates himself. Earle Wheeler's nickname in this movie is "Bus."
Critical response
Television critic Matt Zoller Seitz in his 2016 book co-written with Alan Sepinwall titled TV (The Book) named Path to War as the 6th greatest American TV-movie of all time, writing: "This nearly three-hour epic plays like the greatest political drama that Oliver Stone never made.... This is easily the greatest of Frankenheimer's late-period TV work, which equals his finest work from the 1960s".
Awards
- Sutherland won a 2002 Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries or Television Film for his performance as Clifford.
- 2002 in television
- Presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson