Original Episode: #40 All the President's Men (1976) (released November 4, 2020)
New Episode: #226 All the President's Men (1976) Revisit ft. Betsy and Trent (released September 4, 2024)
Guests:
Betsy and Trent
Never Seen It podcast (@neverseenit_pod on Twitter and Letterboxd, @neverseenitpod1 on IG, @neverseenit on TikTok, patreon.com/neverseenitpod
Previously on the 2024 Post Oscars Reaction Show
Cast:
Alan J. Pakula, Director
William Goldman, Writer
David Shire, Music
Gordon Willis, Cinematography
Dustin Hoffman as Carl Bernstein
Robert Redford as Bob Woodward
Jack Warden as Harry M. Rosenfeld
Martin Balsam as Howard Simons
Hal Holbrook as "Deep Throat"
Jason Robards as Ben Bradlee
Jane Alexander as The Bookkeeper
Stephen Collins as Hugh W. Sloan Jr.
Ned Beatty as Martin Dardis
Meredith Baxter as Deborah Murray Sloan
Penny Fuller as Sally Aiken
Penny Peyser as Sharon Lyons
Lindsay Crouse as Kay Eddy
Robert Walden as Donald Segretti
F. Murray Abraham as Sergeant Paul Leeper
David Arkin as Eugene Bachinski
Recognition:
All the President's Men was wide released on April 9, 1976.
On a budget of roughly $8.5 million, it would gross over $70 million worldwide and was the #6 grossing film in the US and Canada of 1976.
It received near universal praise upon its release from critics and audience alike, and would be nominated for 8 Academy Awards: Best Picture, Director (Pakula), Supporting Actress (Jane Alexander), and Film Editing; winning for Best Supporting Actor (Robards), Adapted Screenplay (Goldman), Art Direction, and Sound.
It became one of the seven films to win Best Picture from three out of four major U.S. film critics' groups (LA, National Board of Review, NY, National Society of Film Critics), along with Nashville, Terms of Endearment, Goodfellas, Pulp Fiction, The Hurt Locker and Drive My Car.
In 2007, Entertainment Weekly ranked All the President's Men as one of its 25 Powerful Political Thrillers.
In 2010, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.
In 2015, The Hollywood Reporter polled hundreds of Academy members, asking them to revote on past controversial decisions. Academy members indicated that, given a second chance, they would award the 1977 Oscar for Best Picture to All the President's Men instead of to Rocky.
The film has been recognized by the AFI on the following lists:
All the President's Men currently holds a 94% among critics on RT, an 84 score on Metacritic, and a 4.2/5 on Letterboxd.
Plot Summary: All the President's Men is a gripping account of two reporters, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, who uncover one of the most significant political scandals in American history. Set against the backdrop of a tense and suspicious Washington DC, the film follows their relentless pursuit of the truth behind the Watergate break-in.
Through meticulous investigation, careful sourcing, and dogged determination; they expose a cover-up that reaches the highest levels of government, ultimately leading to the resignation of President Richard Nixon. The movie is not just a tale of journalism but a testament to the power of persistence and the importance of a free press in holding power accountable.
Did You Know?:
Redford and Hoffman memorized each other's lines so that they could interrupt each other in character. This unsettled a lot of the actors they were playing opposite, leading to a greater sense of authenticity.
Hal Holbrook was the first (and only) choice to play the shadowy informant Deep Throat. During pre-production of the casting process, Bob Woodward -- while looking at various actors' head shots and resumes, but not revealing Deep Throat's true identity (being the former Deputy Director of the FBI, Mark Felt) -- insisted to director Alan J. Pakula that Holbrook was the best choice to play Deep Throat. (Holbrook, in fact, bears a strong resemblance to Mark Felt.) Holbrook originally turned the role down, thinking it would not be a significant part. However, Robert Redford came to Holbrook's house and convinced him to take the role, saying that Deep Throat would be the character that the audience would remember more than any other in the film.
The film introduced the catchphrase "follow the money", which was absent from the book or any documentation of Watergate.
Robert Redford felt that by casting himself as Bob Woodward he was unnecessarily unbalancing the film. The obvious answer was to cast a star of equal weight. For that reason, he approached Dustin Hoffman at a Knicks game and offered him the role of Carl Bernstein.
The furious volley of typewriter hammers striking paper in the opening scenes was created by layering the sounds of gunshots and whiplashes over the actual sounds of a typewriter, accentuating the film's theme of words as weapons. This is also why the closing scene has a teletypewriter printing headlines with the sound of cannon fire from a 21-gun salute in the background.
Ask Dana Anything:
Chris Duncan - Most Frequent GMOAT Guest
What is your favorite vacation memory or memories with Thomas?
Where is the most favorite vacation you recall with your wife or family?
Betsy
If you could get away with a crime, what would you do?
The Stanley Rubric:
Original Legacy Score: 9.5
New Legacy Score: 8.5
Original Impact/Significance Score: 8.5
New Impact/Significance Score: 8.5
Original Novelty Score: 8.5
New Novelty Score: 8.5
Original Classicness Score: 9.25
New Classicness Score: 9
Original Rewatchability Score: 8.75
New Rewatchability Score: 8.31
Original Audience Score: 9.2 (RT)
New Audience Score: 8.35 (75% Google, 92% RT)
Original Total Score: 53.7 (was #11 on our master list)
New Total Score: 51.16
In Memorium:
None
Remaining Questions:
If you didn't know anything about Watergate, can you follow this movie?
Is this the best cast film of the 1970s?
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