One of Our Favorites…All the President’s Men
Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford as Bernstein and Woodward, respectively.
ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN (1976/DVD) In the middle of WikiLeaks and endlessly depressing Mid-Year Election news, it’s great to look back to the Watergate era and to remember just how shocked we were by the revelations uncovered by young reporters Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward of the Washington Post. Wonderfully played by a very young looking Dustin Hoffman (Bernstein) and a smooth Robert Redford (Woodward), filmmaker Alan J. Pakula (Klute and Sophie’s Choice, among many others) builds suspense as the two reporters doggedly uncover the depth and height of the Nixon administration’s corruption. Hal Holbrook plays Deep Throat, standing in the shadows and leading the boys to look ever higher in that administration for culpability. Jason Robards (Oscar winner for Supporting Actor for this pic) is perfect as Ben Bradlee whose gutsy support of his reporters basically resulted in Nixon’s impeachment and resignation. Wow. I remember when this was all coming down. The movie is closely based on the best-selling book by Woodward and Bernstein and is filled with wonderful performances–Jack Warden and Martin Balsam as senior editors and Jane Alexander who, for her eight minutes on screen, earned an Oscar nomination. Speaking of which, this movie garnered 8—count ‘em—8 nominations and 4 wins in 1977, among them a win for screenplay (William Goldman) and a nomination for Best Picture. But who won the big prize that year? Rocky!! Proof that Stallone never dies, what with Expendables just released last weekend and topping the box office. Ha! Also passed over for the Best Pic Oscar in 1977: Taxi Driver. Some things never change.
Grade: A+ Love this movie.
BTW: Be sure to watch as the intrepid reporters actually use books and paper files for research! No Google! They type on typewriters! They dial rotary phones! And they still manage to unearth the sordid truth about the Watergate break-in. Most impressive.
A classic–thanks for the reminder.
Did you see A.O. refer to Stallone as “air-dried aged beef”? I miss At the Movies already.
Excellent flick! Good choice, Becky. I’m also very impressed by seeing old school office work. Doesn’t it look EXHAUSTING? But, you know what’s worse? Back then you had to call the jerk at the record shop and sing a song to find out what song was. Ugh.
Btw! If anyone has the HDNet channel, a SWEET HD version of this is playing this week. Here’s the listing:
All the President’s Men
Cast: Robert Redford, Dustin Hoffman, Jason Robards Director: Alan J. Pakula
Academy Award winning film about Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein and their investigation of the Watergate break-in, which leads to a White House scandal and President Nixon’s resignation.
PG – 1976 –
Tue., Aug. 24 – 5:35 PM ET / 2:35 PM PT