As a true account of one of the most upsetting scams or conspiracies of last century’s political history, ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN is a film strictly made to portray what, when and how it happened without having any additional sub-plot, commercial gimmicks or entertaining relief moments following the set norm. Strictly focusing on ‘HOW’ instead of ‘WHY’, it brilliantly draws a clear, revealing picture of the various stages through which that famous scam got reported and thus remains one of the few films daringly made with a specific and highly dedicated vision showcasing a upsetting truth of the past.
In June 1972 (in USA), a suspicious breakthrough at the Democratic Party's National Committee was caught right in time and a group of men were arrested who later turned out to be CIA agents. At trial the case was strangely represented by reputed lawyers and it was found that the agents were actually working for the government with some unofficial instructions. Two reporters of Washington Post namely Woodward and Cark Bernstein started investigating the case following some big leads and came to the conclusion that this was not anything small since their findings were actually leading towards none other than the President of the United States of America, Richard Nixon and The White House. The editor of the paper instructed them to dig it deeper with more decisive proofs and the film is all about their journey towards the actual hidden truth behind that major scam.
Now even if you are already familiar, don’t care or not willing to know anything about the famous ‘Watergate Conspiracy of 1972”, still you got to see this interesting, well-paced and brilliantly directed film, especially if you love watching fast investigative thrillers bringing in new twists and turns every 10 minutes. Besides it is not really any political film (as it might sound) because the director keeps his entire concentration solely on the two reporters eager to reach the depth of their case, despite knowing the fact that it shamelessly involves the White house.
Actually based on the memoirs (book) of the real life journalists Woodward and Bernstein, ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN has an OSCAR winning script written by William Goldman and can easily be rated as an honest as well as an engaging adaptation of the book deserving appreciation. Starring Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman as the two energetic Washington Post reporters, it unfortunately couldn’t get them a reward but Jason Robards playing their Executive Editor did get the Best Supporting Actor along with the Best Sound and the Best Art Direction OSCAR won by the film in the year 1977. Plus it was also nominated in the categories of Best Editing, Best Actress in a Supporting Role, Best Director and Best Picture too putting up a tough fight for sure.
With an excellent direction by Alan J. Pakula converting an unconventional plot into a fine thriller, the film never goes into a dramatic mode (thanks to its realistic sounds) and remains highly authentic right till its thoughtful climax which leaves you thinking that probably there is no end to this sick concept of corruption and that is the reason why the film is widely included in many ‘Must Watch Movies Lists’ compiled all over.
Made way back in 1976, its quite possible that the present generation (well versed with instant internet connectivity and mobile phones), might find the film a kind of outdated project in comparison. But looking back in time, that was exactly the way investigations used to be conducted in absence of any digital records and various search engines, asking for much more time and dedication. So if you do wish to visit one of the darkest phase of American history resulting in a major change then essentially watch this important film as a must and then also try to catch Oliver Stone's NIXON (1995) & Ron Howard’s FROST NIXON (2008) too in order to get a complete picture of the issue in details.
Directed By Alan J. Pakula
Written By Carl Bernstein & Bob Woodward (Book), William Goldman (Screenplay)
Starring : Dustin Hoffman, Robert Redford, Jack Warden and more.
