The genius of ‘Reagan,’ the film and the man, is that both grasp the nature of evil and the courage and clarity required to confront it.
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Many Americans aren’t old enough to have adult memories of President Ronald Reagan. Fewer still have a personal understanding of the nature and origins of the Cold War — a great power competition between the free West, led by America, and the Soviet bloc that had both a military and an ideological component.
“Reagan,” starring a comfortably convincing Dennis Quaid in the title role, shines as a biopic and a valuable lesson in evil as an organizing principle. The genius of “Reagan” the film and Reagan the man is that both grasp the elemental nature of evil and the moral courage and clarity required to confront it if there is to be any hope of victory.