All Hail to 'All the President's Men'
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NYTimes APR S, 1976-- 42 THE NEW YORK TIMES, ! All Hail to 'All the President's Men' By VINCENT CANBY The Cast tions and admissions of guilt, cal impact, its strength is Newspapers and news- ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN, directed that eventually brought the. the virtually day-by-day rec- by Alan J. Pakula; screenplay by Wil.. Nixon Presidency to its ord of the way Bernstein papermen have long been fa- liam Goldman, based on the bock by vorite subjects for movie ma- Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward; weepy banal conclusion. and Woodward conducted produced by Walter Coblenz; musk, their investigations, always kers—a surprising number of David Shire; director of photography, Like Bernstein and Wood- whom are former newspaper- Gordon Willis; editor, Robert L. Wolfe; ward in the course of their. under the supervision of a a Wildwood production, distributed by kindly avuncular Ben Bradlee * men, yet not until 'All The Warner Brothers. Running time: 136 investigation, the film main- minutes. At Loews Astor Plaza, 44th tains bifocal vision, becom- (Jason Robards), The Post's IF President's Men," the rivet- Street west of Broadway, and Loews ing screen adaptation of the Tower East, Third Avenue near 72d ing thoroughly absorbed in managing editor who (in this. Watergate book by Carl Street This film has been rated PG. the seemingly unimportant firm) gives out advice, cau- Carl Bernstein Dustin Hoffman tion and, occasionally, a Bernstein and Bob Wood- Bob Woodward Robert Redford minutiae out of which major Harry Rosenfeld Jack Warden conspiracies can sometimes "well-done," acting as Dr. ward, has any film come Howard Simons Martin Balsam remotely close to being an Deep Throat Hal Holbrook be reconstructed,. yet never Gillespie to their Dr. Kil- Ben Bradlee Jason Robards dares. w accurate picture of American Bookkeeper Jane Alexander for long losing sight of the journalism, at its best. Debbie Sloan Meredith Baxter overall relevance of what's Mr. Redford and Mr. Hoff- Dardis Ned Beatty man play their roles with "All The President's Men," Hugh Sloan, Jr. Stephen Collins going on. Although "All The directed by Alan J. Pakula, Sally Aiken Penny Fuller President's Men" is first and the low-keyed, understated Foreign Editor John McMaMcMartin efficiency required since they written by William Goldman Donald Segretti Robert Walden foremost a fascinating news- and largely pushed into being Frank Wills paper film, the dimensions are, in effect, the straight Bachinski DavidHiAnirsekilnf men to the people and the ,* by the continuing interest Barker Henry Calvert and implications of the Mannez Dominic Chianese events they are pursuing. The of one of its, stars, Robert Key Eddy :... .... Lindsay Ann Crouse Watergate story obviously rstt Redford, is a lot of things Miss Milland Valerie Curtin give it an emotional punch film stays out of their private McCord Richard Herd lives but is full of unexpect- all at once: a spellbinding Carolyn Abbot Allyn Ann McLerie that might be lacking if, say; detective story about the Angry CRP woman .... Neva Patterson Bernstein and Woodward had ed, brief, moving glimpses work of the two Washington Al Lewis Joshua Shelley been exposing corruption in into the private lives of their Post reporters who helped the Junior League. subjects, including a fright- its two, • as yet unknown re- ened bookkeeper (Jane Alex- •• break the Watergate scandal, • a breathless adventure that porters. Carl Bernstein (Dus- ander) fo rthe Committee recalls the triumphs of Frank tin Hoffman), highly compet- Thus the necessity of the to Re-elect the President, • director's use of newsreel Donald Segretti (Robert Wal- and Joe Hardy in that long- itive and a little more expe- footage from time to time— ago series of boys' books, rienced than his partner, and den), the "dirty tricks" man, and a vivid footnote to some Bob Woodward (Robert Red- the shots of President Nix- and Hugh Sloan Jr. •(Stepehn contemporary American his- on's helicopter making a Collins), the committee trea- ford), very ambitious and a night landing at the White surer, and his wife (Meredith tory that still boggles the dog for details. mind. House, which open the film; Baxter). • It's through their eyes— the television images of the The manners and methods • • skeptical, hungry, insatiably President entering the House of big-city newspapering, • The film, which opened curious—that "All The Pres- of Representatives, and of beautifully detailed, contrib- ▪, yesterday at Loews Astor ident's Men" unfolds. It be- other familiar folk including ute as much to the momen- * Plaza and Tower East Thea- gins logically on the night former Attorney General tum of the film as the myste- ters, is an unequivocal of June 17, 1972, when five John N. Mitchell, former Vice ry that's being uncovered. smash-hit — the- thinking men were arrested in an ap- President Agnew, and, espe- Maybe even more. since the man's "Jaws." parent break-in at the head- cially, Representative Gerald real excitement of "All The • Much of the effectiveness quarters of the Democratic R. Ford in the course of President's Men" is in watch- 1• of the movie, which could National Committee in the his nomination of President ing two comparatively inex- 1."'' easily have become a inish- Watergate complex in Wash- Nixon at the 1972 Republican perienced reporters stumble • mash of names, dates and ington, and continues National Convention. onto the story of their lives events, is in its point of through the spectacular se- Though the film will un- and develop it triumphantly, view, which remains that of ries of revelations, accusa- doubtedly have some politi- against all odds: R. .