William F. Buckley was a conservative. Gore Vidal was a liberal. They were both staggering intelligent. They appeared on television at a time when merely being a smart guy could turn you into a TV personality. It was a magical time, a wonderful rivalry, and the kind of relationship you don’t really see in pop media anymore. Documentarians Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville have made a feature about their relationship called Best of Enemies, which premiere’s at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.
Check Out: William Bibbiani’s Review of Best of Enemies
Crave got to talk to the directors about Buckley and about Vidal, and their special closeness that was equal parts rivalry and hatred, and the famous 1968 televised debates that were the center of their relationship.
Witney Seibold is a contributor to the CraveOnline Film Channel, and co-host of The B-Movies Podcast. You can follow him on “Twitter” at @WitneySeibold, where he is slowly losing his mind.