I take film music very seriously. Therefore, the lack of imagination from composer David Shire on All the President's Men comes as a disappointment. However, the film's content succeeds in disguising this noticeable flaw. Any deficiency in terms of emotional involvement becomes balanced with a heady resolve. Following journalists Bob Woodward (Robert Redford) and Carl Bernstein (Dustin Hoffman) as they expose the political and financial wrongdoings of Nixon's staff results in a motion picture that's nothing short of miraculous.

Unanswered questions, false leads, uncooperative witnesses and White House denials are among the travails experienced by these two Washington Post reporters. In the end... Well, if you're reading this you probably know the outcome. As depicted by director Alan J. Pakula and screenwriter William Goldman, the film teaches us as much about "Woodstein" as it does about politics and the inner workings of a newspaper. We witness the two journalists grow in experience. They learn how to recognize "hard facts" over unsubstantiated hearsay. Jason Robards has one excellent scene in which he takes a pen and puts a line through most of their work. Woodward stays silent while Bernstein strenuously objects. Guess who wins?

Visually, a film like All the President's Men can be rendered static with so many talking heads. Interestingly, Pakula allows cinematographer Gordon Willis to create some amazing in-camera effects, such as split focus. This means a section of the background appears in focus along with Redford who's closer to the camera. Only a small part of the frame goes blurry. This instills some tension in an otherwise uneventful situation where individuals are seen talking on the phone.

As for Redford and Hoffman, they establish a key connection with the audience. Whether it's Redford's unflinching approach to the task at hand or Hoffman's cheekiness, these actors know how to fill in important character details without the luxury of having a back story. Then again, work is their life and their commitment to the truth surpasses all other considerations.

Dramatically, All the President's Men works as a testament to excellence in the field of journalism. Goldman gets his point across in a variety of scenes which call for a careful application of thought. As an overall movie experience, this hardly represents typical entertainment fare. Yet, it's more vital than that because there's an opportunity to take one's time in understanding the implications of such an investigation and what it means for the world in general.

(Released by Warner Home Video and rated "PG" by MPAA.)