Book Vs Movie: “All the President’s Men” (1976)
The Margos search for 70's creeps, dogged reporting, and “Deep Throat”
“Follow the money.” The Watergate scandal of the early 1970s made headlines around the world as Richard Nixon and his loyal group of henchmen basically tried to intimidate their way into making Nixonian policies the law of the land (while breaking the law!)
And they would have gotten away with it too if it weren’t for those meddling Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein who painstakingly investigated the Watergate hotel break-in for years. Under the leadership of publisher Katharine Graham and editor Ben Bradlee, Woodward and Bernstein helped expose the corruption of the Nixon administration and made newspapers look cool.
“All the President’s Men” was published in 1974 and immediately became a bestseller and made stars out the Washington Post team. So, of course, Hollywood came calling with an adaptation directed by Alan J. Pakula and a screenplay by past Book Vs Movie subject William Goldman.
Robert Redford’s production company “Wildwood Enterprises” helped bring together the team which includes himself play Bob Woodward and Dustin Hoffman as Carl Bernstein. Jason Robards won a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for playing Ben Bradlee.
So between book & movie--which did we like better? Have a listen!
In this ep the Margos discuss:
- The true story of Nixon’s crimes and why he almost got away with his multiple crimes
- The process of reporting and how much work went into it in a short period of time
- Who was “Deep Throat” and why didn’t anyone listen to Nora Ephron?
- The cast: Robert Redford (Woodward,) Dustin Hoffman (Carl Bernstein,) Jason Robards (Ben Bradlee,) Jack Warden (Harrey Rosenfeld,) Martin Balsam (Howard Simons,) Hal Holbrook (Deep Throat,) Jane Alexander (Bookkeeper,) and Ned Beatty (Dardis.)
Clips used:
- All The President’s Men trailer
- Woodward and Bernstein decide who is the better writer
- Woodward and Berstein working on the story
- Deep Throat gives advice
- Ben Bradlee stands by the story
- Music by David Shire
Join our Patreon page to help support the show! https://www.patreon.com/bookversusmovie
Book Vs. Movie podcast https://www.facebook.com/bookversusmovie/
Twitter @bookversusmovie www.bookversusmovie.com
Email us at bookversusmoviepodcast@gmail.com
Brought to you by Audible.com You can sign up for a FREE 30-day trial here http://www.audible.com/?source_code=PDTGBPD060314004R
Margo D. @BrooklynFitChik www.brooklynfitchick.com brooklynfitchick@gmail.com
Margo P. @ShesNachoMama https://coloniabook.weebly.com/
Book Vs Movie: “The Perfect Storm” (2000)
The True-ish Stroy About the Sinking of the Andrea Gail in 1991
Ahoy Matey! The Margos can’t seem to escape the sea as we look into the disappearance of the “Andrea Gail” which happened during what was classified as “The Perfect Storm” in late October/early November in 1991. The confluence of two hurricanes and several storms happening at once caused several near-deaths and the force of the US Navy and Coast Guard to rescue several people.
Author Sebastian Junger was faced with a scary challenge when he originally told the story of the doomed fishing expedition in Outdoor magazine. Having no survivors to speak to (spoiler,) the Massachusetts native hung around Gloucester to speak with the family and friends of the crew of the Andrea Gail. His work later became the 1997 bestselling novel “The Perfect Storm.”
Soon Hollywood came calling and director Wolfgang Peterson helmed the hit film that came out in 2000 with George Clooney playing Billy Tyne and Mark Wahlberg as Bobby Shatford. The family of Billy Tyne later sued for the fictionalized portrayal (the film does make him seem to be incompetent, to be honest.) But the special effects drew big crowds at the box office and earned them a free technical Academy Award nominations.
So between book & movie--which did we like better? Have a listen!
In this ep the Margos discuss:
- The work of Sebastian Junger
- The changes between the original story and the film
- The cast: George Clooney (Billy Tyne,) Mark Wahlberg (Bobby Shatford,) John C. Reilly (“Murph,”) Diane Lane (Christina Cotter,) William Fitchner (“Sully,”) John Hawkes (“Bugsy,”) Allen Payne (Alfred Pierre,) Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (Linda Greenlaw,) Karen Allen (Melissa Brown,) Cherry Jones (Edie Bailey,) and Christopher McDonald (Todd Gross.)
Clips used:
- The Perfect Strom trailer
- The storm is brewin’
- Billy flirts with Linda Greenlaw
- Music by James Horner
Join our Patreon page to help support the show! https://www.patreon.com/bookversusmovie
Book Vs. Movie podcast https://www.facebook.com/bookversusmovie/
Twitter @bookversusmovie www.bookversusmovie.com
Email us at bookversusmoviepodcast@gmail.com
Brought to you by Audible.com You can sign up for a FREE 30-day trial here http://www.audible.com/?source_code=PDTGBPD060314004R
Margo D. @BrooklynFitChik www.brooklynfitchick.com brooklynfitchick@gmail.com
Margo P. @ShesNachoMama https://coloniabook.weebly.com/
Book Vs Movie: “The Ghost & Mrs. Muir” (1947)
A romantic love story between a hot-headed former sailor and a beautiful widow
The Margos are not afraid to take on a spooky story from time to time and The Ghost and Mrs. Muir features everything from a cranky specter to a haunted seaside mansion and a lovely widow and young mother who is seeking her independence. Even though people have to yell at her to make it happen!
Based on the novella by R.A. Dick (an Irish woman who preferred to use a gender-neutral nom de plume) the story of angelic Lucy Muir whose husband left her with two (in the novel) kids and a big amount of debt after his death has been transfixing audiences for decades mainly due to the charms of film leads Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison.
The 1945 novel was bought by 20th Century Fox as a project for famed director Joseph L. Mankowitz who decided to lean out the story and let his actors (and locations) shine. It was a hit in 1947 with audiences and critics (it’s 100% on Rotten Tomatoes!)
So between book & movie--which did we like better? Have a listen!
In this ep the Margos discuss:
- The little known life of author Josephine Leslie
- The changes between the original story and the film
- The cast: Gene Tierney (Lucy Muir,) Rex Harrison (Captain Daniel Gregg,) George Sanders (Miles Fairley,) Edna Best (Martha Huggins,) and Natalie Wood (Anna Muir.)
Clips used:
- The Ghost and Mrs. Muir trailer
- The Captain proposes a book
- The 1968 TV show
- Closing music by Bernard Herrmann
Join our Patreon page to help support the show! https://www.patreon.com/bookversusmovie
Book Vs. Movie podcast https://www.facebook.com/bookversusmovie/
Twitter @bookversusmovie www.bookversusmovie.com
Email us at bookversusmoviepodcast@gmail.com
Brought to you by Audible.com You can sign up for a FREE 30-day trial here http://www.audible.com/?source_code=PDTGBPD060314004R
Margo D. @BrooklynFitChik www.brooklynfitchick.com brooklynfitchick@gmail.com
Margo P. @ShesNachoMama https://coloniabook.weebly.com/