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Rating: 5 out of 5
I love me a good investigation journalism film. One that shows two people getting down and dirty and trying to find the truth of what happened. I’m not talking about the ones you see today with paparazzi with their cameras trying to break the latest and greatest news. I’m talking about the ones where the person or people have to really call sources, investigate to the fullest and write a story that will rock the investigated place and even society to its core.
How big do you think your story will be from people breaking into a building, getting caught, and then ultimately leading to the President of the United States resigning. That is a pretty freakin big story in my eyes. All the President’s Men is that story about the Watergate scandal in which the Nixon administration’s continual attempts to cover up its involvement in the break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Washington, D.C. Watergate Office Building. A film that shows the connection of when five perpetrators went from being arrested, with the press and the U.S. Justice Department connected the cash found on them at the time to the Nixon re-election campaign committee and how Nixon’s men all tried to cover it up. The only thing is when you leave a paper trail, it comes back to bite you on the ass. Like the movie said, “Follow the Money.”
All the President’s Men begins on the fateful day of June 17, 1972, in Washington D.C. Five men tape a door open and start doing something they ain’t supposed to until they get caught. The men have broken into the National Democratic Party headquarters in the Watergate building. At the Washington Post, wet behind the ears reporter Bob Woodward (Redford) is assigned to what everyone believes is a minor story. Woodward notices that the five men, primarily Cuban immigrants, have high-priced and powerful lawyers working for them at the court. Woodward believes that there is more than meets the eye and decides to investigate the story further. As he investigates, he is soon partnered with fellow Washington Post reporter Carl Bernstein (Hoffman), who seems to be almost out the door with being fired. The two are icy at first but soon see they can help each other out. One of Woodward’s contacts, who is called Deep Throat, implies that what happened is far bigger than anything he can imagine and tells Woodward to “follow the money.” As the duo follow the money, they soon realize that the burglars had money in their bank accounts that were originally donated to the Committee to Reelect President Richard Nixon. They soon realize that the more they uncover, the more it leads to higher-ups and the White House. With the story in mind, they are met with obstacles from the newspaper’s editor-in-chief Ben Bradlee (Robards), who needs their story to be confirmed by reliable source after reliable source to prevent liable. This hampers the duo, as many will speak on the record. As the search for sources and proof, some try to stop them in the name of national security.
I love this film’s plot because it is actually real. You know I love me some drama, and this one has some major drama in it as it deals with the significant corruption with the President of the United States. Now many believe the government is terrible, and this one cemented President Nixon as Tricky Dick because he and his men were dirty dealing. I love how the title relates to the overall film. As the men get deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole, we see that pretty much all of the President’s prominent men are involved with this scandal.
What is great about the whole uncovering is that it seems like all the information is light, and Deep Throat is feeding them information. What a freakin name right there. Deep Throat. You can definitely make some comments about that name, but that is for another day. What I like about the whole Deep Throat is when he said, “Follow the money.” Everyone knows not to leave a paper trail, and when them funds change hands, that trail becomes easy to find.
Just seeing the men investigate is another part of the story because it seems like NO ONE wanted to talk, and when those accusations started flying, people started denying everything. One of the scenes that stands out is when Woodward goes and investigates one of the break-in men, and he is just like, “yea, this and that.” It was crazy because dude had the biggest smile and had some big ass teeth. Another great scene was when Berstein needed a reliable source. At the 11th hour, Bernstein is on the phone and asks questions and gives that countdown to confirm or deny. When the dude was quiet, that is when the story was released. It was perfect suspense.
The cast of this film was excellent as each person did their role to great fervor. Robert Redford as Bob Woodward and Dustin Hoffman as Carl Bernstein were great and had that friendly partnership. Redford was the intense one who always wanted answers and was quite pushy during the investigation. Hoffman seemed the opposite as the nervous one who appeared to be so hyped up on coffee that he was jittery but also knew how to look for answers. They seemed to play off of each other really well.
The coolest person in the room and the whole movie was Jason Robards as Ben Bradlee. This dude right here never seemed to raise his voice and always wanted to make sure his men had the story airtight before printing. When it was time, he let it loose and knew how to defend his paper and men until the very end. Jane Alexander as the Bookkeeper (Judy Hoback Miller), was straight-up lovely and the one who dealt that final blow to the whole investigation and even went undercover with a date and got the last person to talk. She was so sweet and beautiful and should be fully given credit for her part.
I must say that All the President’s Men is one of the finest and best investigation movies I have ever seen. It is fantastic to see how a break-in caused the downfall of the most powerful man in the world, the President of the United States. It is incredible to see how the men around President Nixon operated to get him reelected and ultimately resigned from his job. The cast is terrific as they get down and follow the money to the very end. Don’t leave that paper trail.
