Secret Honor (1984): Cast, Box Office & Plot
Secret Honor is a 1984 drama directed by Robert Altman, starring Philip Baker Hall as Richard Milhous Nixon. It runs 1 hour 30 minutes and earned $942 worldwide.
- Released
- Runtime
- 1h 30m (90 min)
- Director
- Robert Altman
- Genre
- Drama
- Original language
-
English - Studio
- Sandcastle 5
- After the credits
- No No extra scene
What Is Secret Honor About?
The premise of Secret Honor without spoilers. The whole story is in the plot summary further down.
In a New Jersey study, Richard Nixon revisits the missteps of his political career, seeking to absolve himself for Watergate while denouncing President Gerald Ford’s decision to pardon him. His monologue delves into his life, upbringing and his mother, with only a tape recorder, a gun and whiskey as companions, and is tinged with the vitriol and paranoia that defined his public persona.
Secret Honor Themes & Keywords
· 50 tags- dark comedy
- one man film
- watergate scandal
- watergate
- republican party
- politics
- politician
- nixon resignation
- tragedy
- dead brother
- president of the united states
- one man show
+38 more Show fewer
- based on play
- independent film
- closed circuit tv
- reference to h.r. haldeman
- reference to helen gaghan douglas
- reference to gerald ford
- reference to george h.w. bush
- reference to uncle sam
- reference to charles de gaulle
- reference to alexander haig
- racial slur
- microphone
- pistol
- handgun
- reference to ralph nader
- reference to jane fonda
- reference to alger hiss
- reference to franklin d. roosevelt
- reference to julius and ethel rosenberg
- reference to murray chotiner
- reference to deep throat
- anti semite
- kneeling
- reference to the shah of iran
- reference to judas
- reference to camelot
- ethnic slur
- monologue
- reference to charles gregory 'bebe' rebozo
- reference to klemens von metternich
- reference to napoleon
- talking to dead mother
- reference to whittaker chambers
- reference to wright patman
- piano
- reference to the los angeles times
- reference to the washington post
- reference to dwight eisenhhower
Secret Honor Cast & Characters
Philip Baker Hall plays Richard Milhous Nixon in Secret Honor. Directed by Robert Altman.
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Director Robert Altman
-
Philip Baker Hall as Richard Milhous Nixon
More from Robert Altman
More films directed by Robert Altman, best-rated first: Nashville, The Player, McCabe & Mrs. Miller and The Long Goodbye.
Secret Honor Plot Summary
What happens in Secret Honor from start to finish, spoilers included, with a timeline of 12 key events. The opening is below; the full summary is a 5-minute read.
Spoilers ahead
In a tense, character-driven meditation, Richard Milhous Nixon—a disgraced former president—paces a dim study in his Saddle River, New Jersey mansion during the early 1980s. A loaded revolver sits on the desk beside a bottle of Scotch and a running tape recorder, while closed-circuit cameras keep a watching chorus of eyes on him. What unfolds over approximately ninety minutes is a long, spiraling monologue that swerves between rage, suspicion, sadness, and disappointment as he traverses the contours of his controversial life and career. The mood is claustrophobic, the air taut with power and paranoia, and the room becomes a kind of confessional stage where memory and grievance are the main performers.
Full summary
The whole story of Secret Honor, scene by scene
Secret Honor Box Office
Secret Honor grossed $942 worldwide.
Worldwide gross
$942
Secret Honor Videos
The clip of Secret Honor.
How Well Do You Know Secret Honor?
10 questions about the story, each with a hint if you get stuck. Pick an answer to see whether you were right.
Question 1 of 10
- Question 1: not answered
- Question 2: not answered
- Question 3: not answered
- Question 4: not answered
- Question 5: not answered
- Question 6: not answered
- Question 7: not answered
- Question 8: not answered
- Question 9: not answered
- Question 10: not answered
Which former U.S. president is the sole on‑screen character in Secret Honor?
Secret Honor Also Known As
5 alternative titles, including “Secret Honor - Die geheime Ehre des Präsidenten” and “A Honra Secreta”.
- Also known as
-
- Secret Honor - Die geheime Ehre des Präsidenten
- A Honra Secreta
- Тайная честь
- 秘密的荣誉
- Chwała w ukryciu
Seen Secret Honor?
Movies Like Secret Honor
Films with a similar story, tone or audience, including Nixon, The Assassination of Richard Nixon and Gaslit.
Secret Honor FAQ: Cast, Box Office & Runtime
Runtime, release date, director, cast, box office and post-credit scenes of Secret Honor, each answered in a sentence.
How long is Secret Honor?
Secret Honor runs 1 hour 30 minutes (90 minutes).
When was Secret Honor released?
Secret Honor was released on July 6, 1984.
Who directed Secret Honor?
Secret Honor was directed by Robert Altman.
More films by Robert Altman Who is in the cast of Secret Honor?
Secret Honor stars Philip Baker Hall as Richard Milhous Nixon.
How much did Secret Honor make at the box office?
Secret Honor grossed $942 worldwide.
Does Secret Honor have a post-credit scene?
No. Secret Honor has no extra scene during or after the credits.
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