Robert Redford, who died on September 16, was one of the most iconic movie stars. He was also a highly secure leading man, shining in solo roles while also generously sharing the screen with his male co-stars – evident from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Sting and Spy Game.

In All The President’s Men, Redford has top billing and equal screen time with Dustin Hoffman. The movie is proof of Redford’s conviction for being part of something bigger and more important than him.

The film is part of Alan J Pakula’s paranoia trilogy. Alongside Klute (1971) and The Parallax View (1974), All The President’s Men (1976) imagines the American government as the biggest violator of the rules it has laid down for its citizenry, an opaque and sinister force that commits crimes from behind the scenes. All The President’s Men has a character who literally operates in the shadows and changes the course of events.

William Goldman’s screenplay is adapted from the book of the same name by The Washington Post journalists Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward. The film revolves around the infamous Watergate scandal in 1974. The newspaper’s investigation showed that US President Richard Nixon, who was pursuing a second term, was involved in spying on the rival Democratic Party.

All The President’s Men reveals the importance of dogged reporting in holding rulers accountable for their actions. Available to rent on Prime Video, the film that has been beautifully shot by the legendary cinematographer Gordon Willis is a tribute to both the value and allure of journalism.

Redford and Hoffman play Woodward and Bernstein respectively – young and brash reporters keen on making a mark at one of America’s most storied newspapers. Woodward initially works on the Watergate story alone, later forming a partnership with Bernstein.

The movie is an excellent press procedural. Like police detectives chasing down clues so that their case will ultimately stand up in court, Woodward and Bernstein follow the bread crumbs that can plausibly connect a bunch of arrested men with the country’s top leader.

Jason Robards beautifully plays the newspaper’s charismatic editor Benjamin Bradlee, who has the habit of putting his feet up on his desk. Bradlee’s withering comments push Woodward and Bernstein to put in the hard work that will make their stories credible.

All The President’s Men is among very few films to accurately portray the way in which journalism works. There’s nothing flashy or heroic about the editorial meetings, the numerous phone calls, the meetings with sources. The movie mostly takes place in a cavernous newsroom packed with reporters hunched over messy desks – later seen in David Fincher’s Zodiac (2007).

The reporting is rigorous but thrilling too. An undercurrent of ruffled cool, a kind of casual sexiness, is unmistakeable. What can be more alluring than journalists chasing the truth? By giving investigative journalism the intensity of a hunt, the movie arguably inspired generations of viewers to consider a career in the media.

Bradlee’s pithy speech to Woodward and Bernstein is still worthy of repetition. Bradlee says, “Nothing is riding on this [the Watergate story] except the First Amendment of the constitution, the freedom of the press and maybe the future of the country – not that any of that matters.”

The typically cynical but also wise declaration gives the movie continued relevance. All The President’s Men is a throwback to the glory years of newspapers. The newsgathering process, technology, the influence of the media, print journalism itself – all of these have drastically changed since the film came out.

Yet, every time the freedom of the press comes under attack – whether in India or the US – All The President’s Men resurfaces as a source of hope. One of the most inspiring scenes is also an exemplar of superb sound design.

Woodward and Bernstein bang away at their typewriters, filing the reports that will eventually force Nixon to resign. The typing is laid over Nixon’s second swearing-in ceremony, which includes a military parade. The authoritative clanging of the typewriters eventually takes over, sounding every bit like a firing squad.

Also start the week with these films:

In ‘Dolores Claiborne’, a woman wonders if her mother has killed – twice

Why ‘Alappuzha Gymkhana’ is and isn’t about boxing

Life Without Principle’ looks at the highs and lows of the stock market

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