All the President's Men

The All the President's Men Store

The Video & DVD All the President's Men	DVD All the President's Men	The Books All the President's Men
		All the President's Men (S&S Classic Edition)

All the President's Men
by Elizabeth Gray

Huge

     All the President's Men is a riveting look at the uncovering of the Watergate scandal by two Washington Post journalists. Bob Woodward (played by Robert Redford) and Carl Bernstein (Dustin Hoffman), using investigative journalism at its best, expose the seamy underside of politics, and bring down a presidency. Redford and Hoffman are wonderfully cast as the two young reporters trying to make a name for themselves with the story of a lifetime. An all-star cast back them up with such veteran actors as Jane Alexander (Kramer vs. Kramer), Jason Robards as Ben Bradley, and Hal Holbrook as Deep Throat. This powerfully-written and -directed suspense drama, based on the book written by Woodward and Bernstein, captures a black time in United States history and recreates it in intricate detail. Director Alan J. Pakula takes the audience on a ride following the reporters as they chase down leads. 
     The scenes in the newsroom put the audience in the chair next to the reporters, listening in on phone conversations, and seeing what they write in their notepads, picking up the pieces of the story with them. But Pakula never lets you forget that what you are seeing is serious American history. He uses a T.V. set in the newsroom to show actual news footage of the day, including Nixon taking the oath of office. Scenes inside the White House Library of Congress, and up and down the streets of Washington add to the realism of the film. 
     The final scene in which the wire service types out the charges laid against the men involved in the scandal brings back memories of when the news first hit the news stands in 1974. This intricately-detailed movie does justice to the historical account of Watergate, but be warned. Unless you are a Watergate history buff, you may have to see it more than once to tie all the names and events together. But seeing it again is not a sacrifice considering the wonderful writing and performances throughout.

Academy Awards:(5) Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Sound, Best Supporting Actor, Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium
National Society of Film Critics Awards, USA: (2) Best Film, Best Supporting Actor

Mike's movie info: IMdb

Frank Wills, the security guard who discovered the break-in at the Watergate complex, plays himself.

British director John Schlesinger declined an offer to direct as he felt the story of Watergate should be told by an American.

This was the first film Jimmy Carter watched during his presidential tenure. Toasted a Billy Beer to it too (no he didn't, but I like Billy Beer -Mark).

The furious volley of typewriter keys striking paper in the opening scenes was created by layering the sounds of gunshots and whip-lashes over the actual sounds of a typewriter, accentuating the film's theme of words as weapons.

Permission to film at the Washington Post's newsroom was denied, so the production team recreated the facility at a Burbank studio in Los Angeles for a reported $450,000. The Post did, however, cooperate with the production's quest for authenticity by shipping several crates of actual newsroom refuse that included: unopened mail, government directories, Washington telephone directories, wire service copy, calendars, and even stickers from Ben Bradlee's secretary's desk.

During the Watergate Affair, Carl Bernstein was married to future writer-director Nora Ephron.

Washington Post boss Katharine Graham, who was initially very apprehensive about the film using the paper's name, loved the film and later wrote a letter of praise and approval to star and co-producer Robert Redford.