Review of All the President's Men (1976) by Thomas B — 08 Nov 2009

This movie is difficult. You have to really push yourself to actually watch the whole way through, or you are really into the whole 'suspense without anything happening' style. It is a really difficult film to watch without sleeping at least once. But despite that, there is a reason that it is critically acclaimed all around the globe, and that's because it is so perfectly paced the whole way through. Watching it in today's context is difficult. Surrounded by the cheap thrills of crappy action films and childish comedies, it is difficult to appreciate the incredible direction and meaty content matter. But for those of you who are serious about it, you will find a lot to love here. Dustin Hoffman is brilliant, as per the norm, as the gutsy and slightly 'Rain Man' Carl Bernstein and Robert Redford is is great as the idealistic though slightly self-centered Robert Woodward. The fact that this is based on a true story is just one of the reasons that this film works so well. It's all very well imagining an event like this, but for the generation who lived through it and remember it, this becomes much more than the gripping thriller which it is in its own right, it becomes a journey into their own past, which is more convincing than any storyteller. The tense moments which abound are all amazing, shot and paced so delicately and precisely that you can't help to fell frightened. Paying attention to the age old rule of that which you can't see is scarier, Pakula manages to have you on your toes without actually doing anything. The caution that is applied to the circumstances and the cleverness of the script also helps to make this film as good as it is. Great movie.

Defining Scene:

It's gotta be the amazing ending with Dustin Hoffman counting slowly to ten down the phone line. That moment of realisation sends tingles down the spine.