All the President's Men (film)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| All the President's Men | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster |
|
| Directed by | Alan J. Pakula |
| Produced by | Walter Coblenz |
| Written by | William Goldman Based on book by Bob Woodward Carl Bernstein |
| Starring | Robert Redford Dustin Hoffman Jason Robards Jack Warden Hal Holbrook Jane Alexander Martin Balsam |
| Music by | David Shire |
| Cinematography | Gordon Willis |
| Editing by | Robert L. Wolfe |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. |
| Release date(s) | 4 April 1976 (USA) |
| Running time | 138 minutes |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Budget | US$8,500,000 |
| Allmovie profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
All the President's Men is a 1976 film based on the 1974 non-fiction book by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, the two journalists investigating the Watergate scandal for the Washington Post. The film adaptation starred Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman as Woodward and Bernstein, respectively; it was produced by Walter Coblenz and directed by Alan J. Pakula.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The book, also titled All the President's Men, was adapted for the screen by William Goldman. The story chronicles the Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporting of Woodward and Bernstein from the former's initial report on the Watergate break-in through the resignations of H. R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, and the revelation of the Nixon tapes by Alexander Butterfield in 1973. It relates the events behind the major stories the duo wrote for the Post, naming some sources who had previously refused to be identified for their initial articles, notably Hugh Sloan. It also gives detailed accounts of Woodward's secret meetings with his source Deep Throat whose identity was kept secret for over 30 years. (Only in 2005 was Deep Throat revealed to be former FBI Associate Director W. Mark Felt).
[edit] Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Dustin Hoffman | Carl Bernstein |
| Robert Redford | Bob Woodward |
| Jack Warden | Harry M. Rosenfeld |
| Martin Balsam | Howard Simons |
| Hal Holbrook | Deep Throat |
| Jason Robards | Ben Bradlee |
| Jane Alexander | Judy Hoback |
| Meredith Baxter | Debbie Sloan |
| Ned Beatty | Martin Dardis |
| Stephen Collins | Hugh W. Sloan, Jr. |
| Penny Fuller | Sally Aiken |
| Robert Walden | Donald Segretti |
| Frank Willis | Himself |
| F. Murray Abraham | Sgt. Paul Leeper |
| David Arkin | Eugene Bachinski |
| Henry Calvert | Bernard Barker |
| Dominic Chianese | Eugenio Martínez |
| Nate Esformes | Virgilio González |
| Ron Hale | Frank Sturgis |
| Richard Herd | James W. McCord Jr. |
[edit] Production
According to Redford, they tried to film in the actual Washington Post newsroom, but it proved impossible because many Post employees were too aware of the camera, and some even tried to "act." Some employees would disappear into restrooms and apply make up. It was also causing inconvenience to the regular running of the news room[citation needed].
The production team recreated the facility at a Burbank, California studio for a reported $450,000. According to the Post, the newspaper did not allow them to film in their newsroom, so the film crew moved shelves and even recreated the stickers on the secretary's desk in order to appear accurate. Regardless, certain scenes were filmed inside and around the actual Post building.[1]
Frank Wills, the Watergate security guard who first discovered the break-in, played himself in the film.
Some scenes in the film use dioptric lenses, which allow a "split screen" effect on a single take: each half of a shot can have its own focal length (that is, a man in the foreground can be in focus, yet on the other side of the frame, a man in the background can also be in focus--with objects between the two of them out of focus). Use of a dioptric lens requires a sharp dividing line to hide the effect; All the President's Men typically used pillars and desks for dividing lines.
The cinematography was done by Gordon Willis, who also did The Godfather. His specialty was shooting in dark, for which he earned the nickname, "Prince of Darkness". In this movie, most of the shots outside have been filmed in darkness as opposed to the cold, fluorescent light in the newsroom.
The film also is an early film to make extensive use of different color temperatures in the same shot: for instance, at the beginning during the break-in, the light from inside is noticeably orange, whereas the light from outside is noticeably blue.
The billing followed the formula of James Stewart and John Wayne in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, with Redford billed over Hoffman in the posters and trailers and Hoffman billed above Redford in the film itself.
[edit] Differences from the book
Unlike the book, the film itself only covers the first seven months of the Watergate scandal, from the time of the break-in to Nixon's inauguration on January 20, 1973. A series of teletype headlines then tell the rest of the story. Although the headlines cover a period through 1975, they are not shown in strict chronological order, so as to end with the dramatic announcement of Nixon's resignation in August 1974.
[edit] Awards and Nominations
| Award | Category | Winner/Nominee | Won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Awards | |||
| Best Art Direction | George Jenkins George Gaines |
Yes | |
| Best Director | Alan J. Pakula | No | |
| Best Editing | Robert L. Wolfe | ||
| Best Picture | |||
| Best Screenplay - Adapted | William Goldman | Yes | |
| Best Sound | Arthur Piantadosi James E. Webb Les Fresholtz Dick Alexander |
||
| Best Supporting Actor | Jason Robards | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Jane Alexander | No | |
| American Cinema Editors (ACE) | Best Edited Feature Film | Robert L. Wolfe | No |
| BAFTA Film Awards | Best Actor | Dustin Hoffman | No |
| Best Cinematography | Gordon Willis | ||
| Best Director | Alan J. Pakula | ||
| Best Film | |||
| Best Editing | Robert L. Wolfe | ||
| Best Production Design/Art Direction | George Jenkins | ||
| Best Screenplay | William Goldman | ||
| Best Sound Track | Arthur Piantadosi James E. Webb Les Fresholtz Dick Alexander |
||
| Best Supporting Actor | Jason Robards | ||
| Best Supporting Actress | Jane Alexander | ||
| Directors Guild of America | Outstanding Directorial Achievement | Alan J. Pakula | No |
| Golden Globe Awards | Best Director | Alan J. Pakula | No |
| Best Picture | |||
| Best Screenplay | William Goldman | ||
| Best Supporting Actor | Jason Robards | ||
| Kansas City Film Critics | Best Supporting Actor | Jason Robards | Yes |
| National Board of Review | Best Director | Alan J. Pakula | Yes |
| Top 10 Films of the Year (#1) | |||
| Best Supporting Actor | Jason Robards | Yes | |
| New York Film Critics | Best Director | Alan J. Pakula | Yes |
| Best Film | |||
| Best Supporting Actor | Jason Robards | ||
| Writers Guild of America (WGA) | Best Adapted Screenplay | William Goldman | Yes |
According to Box Office Mojo.com, the film earned a "Domestic Total Gross" of $70,600,000.
In 2007, it was added to the AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) list at #77.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- All the President's Men at the Internet Movie Database
- All the President's Men at Allmovie
- All the President's Men at Rotten Tomatoes
- Washington Post's retrospective article
- Post article on the film crew visiting their offices
|
|||||
