William Goldman wrote the screenplay for All the President's Men (1976) and won an Oscar for doing so. Goldman adapted his work from the book of the same name by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward which they had, in turn, based on their reporting of the "Watergate scandal" for the Washington Post.
The story is fantasy, but it is a great flick nonetheless.
In 1974, Robert Redford bought the film rights to Woodward and Bernstein's book and hired previous collaborator Goldman to write the script. Ben Bradlee, the Post's executive editor, and prime Nixon antagonist, said he wanted to influence the movie "factually," so he had Woodward and Bernstein help with the writing and production of the film.
Goldman generally found Woodward to be a hail fellow well met, but found Bernstein to be a complete jerk. Over the last half-century, most interactions with the famous reporting duo were similar.
On the screen, Redford played the part of Woodward while Dustin Hoffman added some humor and humanity to the dour Bernstein character. Both actors pulled off their roles with flying colors.
Redford was and is a more dynamic person than the dull Woodward. Hoffman gave people a reason to root for Bernstein.
In preparing to play the two investigative reporters, Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman visited the offices of the Washington Post where the real Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein worked. A group of high school students were being guided about the newsroom at the same time, and as soon as they spotted Robert Redford, they rushed towards him with their cameras at the ready.
"Wait," said a reporter who acted as their guide, "here's the real Bob Woodward. Don't you want a picture of him?"
"No," said one youngster, as he joined the others in the rush.
Fantasy sells better than reality. For instance, the film's catchphrase "follow the money" never appeared in the book or in any Watergate documentation.
Roger Ebert, writing for the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film 3½ stars out of a possible 4, noting: "It provides the most observant study of working journalists we're ever likely to see in a feature film. And it succeeds brilliantly in suggesting the mixture of exhilaration, paranoia, self-doubt, and courage that permeated The Washington Post as its two young reporters went after a presidency."
The motion picture was nominated for eight Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director and brought home four Oscars. The great Jason Robards won Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Washington Post editor and Nixon antagonist Ben Bradlee.
Goldman won for Best Screenplay – Based on Material from Another Medium. It also won for Best Art Direction and Best Sound.
But why this tale today?
Other than it is one of my favorite movies of all-time, I also hate it for further ruining the legacy of a darn-good president, Richard M. Nixon.
Right now, Americans are also girding their proverbial loins for the "peaceful transition of power" that is supposed to happen on Monday. A transition that certainly didn't happen with the end of President Nixon's second term in office.
Dusting off the archives, I also came across a podcast I did about two years ago, where I asked the question: Is Richard Nixon the most liberty-minded president in U.S. history?
Surprise! The evidence is strong to quite strong in Tricky Dick's favor.
Have a gander:
As always,
Brian
