The Ballad of Nixon and Brezhnev

The Ballad of Nixon and Brezhnev is a dark comedy that follows the ridiculous and frequently humorous mishaps of US President Richard Nixon and Soviet General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev as they try to discuss armaments limitation. The story is set during a fictitious Cold War meeting in Geneva in the 1970s. Their competitive egos, cultural miscommunications, and personal fears take center stage as the leaders engage in a series of increasingly absurd events, leaving serious diplomacy to their worn-out assistants, Andrei Gromyko and Henry Kissinger.

The conference devolves into a bizarre struggle of wills between Brezhnev's raucous humor and fascination with cowboys and Nixon's obsession with image and worry over possible spies. Whether they are trading gifts, having a disastrous joyride in Brezhnev's fancy automobiles, or playing petty tennis, their inability to get along leads to a hilarious confrontation of inflated egos.
The Ballad of Nixon and Brezhnev, which combines dark humor and political satire, is a caustic commentary on the human weaknesses that underlie historical events. It also highlights how brittle international diplomacy can be when it is motivated by pride, paranoia, and pettiness.