All the president's men
All the President's Men (All the President's Men) is a 1976 American film directed by Alan J. Pakula. Starring Robert Redford, Dustin Hoffman, Jack Warden, Jason Robards, Martin Balsam, Hal Holbrook, and Jane Alexander in the lead roles.
Based on the book of the same name by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, published in 1974, which tells the story of the journalistic investigation that led to the famous 'Watergate' scandal, which forced Richard Nixon to resign as President of the United States.
In 2010 it was included among the films preserved by the National Film Registry of the United States Library of Congress, for being considered "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant", and in 2007 on the list AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) from the American Film Institute.
Plot
Washington Post journalists Carl Bernstein (Dustin Hoffman) and Bob Woodward (Robert Redford) investigate a seemingly minor political issue. Seeing that renowned lawyers are working on the case, they realize that behind all this there may be something much more important. They intensify their inquiries by following all the clues that open up before them, until they get the collaboration of a confidant. In the end, they uncover a dirty affair that involves the White House, and with it the president of the nation himself.
The plot is not limited to the political events that occurred during the Watergate Scandal; It also covers discussions between journalists and their Washington Post bosses about how they should treat the news, the consequences of revealing serious illegal acts by presidential advisers, and the adventures Bernstein and Woodward went through to support their reports and articles.
The narrative ends abruptly with Nixon's swearing in as re-elected president on January 20, 1973. Not to omit the true conclusion of the story (Nixon's resignation in August 1974), subsequent events in January 1973 are narrated using newspaper-style typed notes, filmed in the final scenes. The last note is reduced to an account of the resignation of Richard Nixon on August 9, 1974 and the assumption of command of Gerald Ford that same date at noon.
Differences between the book and the movie
Unlike the book, the film itself only covers the first seven months of the Watergate scandal, from the time of the Watergate Building raid (July 1972) to Richard Nixon's inauguration on January 20 1973. Meanwhile, the book covers the events from the Watergate Building raid to January 1974, when Nixon addresses Congress for the State of the Union Address for the last time.
Neither the book nor the film recounts the subsequent events that occurred during the United States Senate investigation of President Nixon or his resignation. However, these omissions are circumvented in the film by filming a series of typed news stories that abruptly end the film in a few scenes, revealing the "snowball" sparked by Woodward and Bernstein, and briefly but directly describing the way the Watergate Scandal ended.
Cast
| Actor | Character |
|---|---|
| Dustin Hoffman | Carl Bernstein |
| Robert Redford | Bob Woodward |
| Jack Warden | Harry M. Rosenfeld |
| Martin Balsam | Howard Simons |
| Hal Holbrook | "Professional Garganta/Deep Throat" |
| Jason Robards | Ben Bradlee |
| Jane Alexander | Judy Hoback |
| Meredith Baxter | Debbie Sloan |
| Ned Beatty | Martin Dardis |
| Polly Holliday | Secretary of Martin Dardis |
| Stephen Collins | Hugh W. Sloan, son. |
| Penny Fuller | Sally Aiken |
| Robert Walden | Donald Segretti |
| Frank Wills | The same |
| F. Murray Abraham | Police Sergeant Paul Leeper |
| David Arkin | Eugene Bachinski |
| Henry Calvert | Bernard Barker |
| Dominic Chianese | Eugenio Martínez |
| Ron Hale | Frank Sturgis |
| James. | Hugh Sloan Lawyer |
| Basil Hoffman | Assistant Editor |
Production
Robert Redford was the one who came up with the idea of making the film. He agreed to buy the rights to the film from Woodward and Bernstein for $450,000 in April 1974, a few months before his book was published, and, once successful, commissioned William Goldman to write the script, which he did with the assistance of Woodward and Bernstein.
To prepare the film, the director observed the Washington Post newsroom for several weeks. Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman also spent several weeks preparing at the Washington Post offices, in addition to attending numerous press conferences as part of his preparation to make this film.
Reception
The film was a huge success at the box office and was well received by critics. The cinematographic work also made legends of Woodward and Bernstein, as well as being revered by journalists and political addicts as well as moviegoers and filmmakers..
Awards
- 4 Oscar Awards 1977: The best secondary actor (Jason Robards), The best art direction, the best sound, and the best script.
- Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards 1977: the best secondary actor (Jason Robards).
- National Board of Review 1976: the best director, the best film and the best secondary actor (Jason Robards).
- National Society of Film Critics Award 1977: the best film and the best secondary actor (Jason Robards).
- NYFCC Award 1977: the best director, the best film and the best secondary actor (Jason Robards).
- Writers Guild of America Award 1977: the best script - drama.