The Secret Man - Mark Felt

Mark Felt (Liam Neeson) is the Associate Director of the FBI as the right-hand man of the legendary Hoover. He's considered the G-Men's G-Man. After Hoover's death, L. Patrick Gray is appointed the acting director over Felt despite his loyal 30 years career. His wife Audrey (Diane Lane) suggests resigning. They are still struggling with their estranged daughter Joan who had run away a year earlier. It's 1972 and there's a break-in at the Watergate. Felt is ordered to limit his investigation and he would become the infamous whistle blower Deep Throat.

This could work as a companion piece to All The President's Men. Oddly enough, both extreme sides of the political spectrum would consider Felt a villain. One would consider him a traitor. The other would consider him a jackbooted militaristic police. Neither would find this movie fair and balanced. On the other hand, some today would find this very fitting. Neeson is a perfect sincere self-righteous FBI agent. This is one version of the man and allows a bit of insight. That is more than enough.

Just watched this biography, drama about the man who worked for the FBI for 31 years, and was the informer they called "deep throat' in the Watergate scandal, and downfall of a POTUS. Liam Neeson plays Mark Felt, and he does a superior job. If you are a political junkie like me, you will really like this movie, if not, you will probably be bored. But, not only very educational, I found it very good.

From the very beginning, in order to understand everything, you do have to pay close attention to each scene and dialogue. While the cutting in most areas of the movie is very precise and fine for the tone, there were a couple bits that seemed an odd transition. I found the story shown quite intriguing, though I have not looked in detail in the real-life story. The conclusion felt a bit anti-climatic, but it is an okay ending.

I would consider this movie watchable if you enjoy a tense and a semi-complicated plot structure for a movie. I would even say it can be re-watched occasionally, though there is little humour displayed.

Astonishing: The most famous whistle blower in history gets his own docudrama, and it's a bit dull. Mark Felt (Liam Neeson), aka "Deep Throat," is tag lined in the movie's title as "the man who brought down the White House." The 2005 Vanity Fair article finally told the story, and this rendition hints at much intrigue left untold. It's the other side of All the President's Men but not nearly as well done.

As the deputy associate director of the FBI, Felt knew so much that he couldn't be fired for fear he'd reveal all. Yes, he had control of Hoover's "private files" (lots of sexual indiscretions) after his death in 1972, and he had 31 years of service. To boot, he was a straight arrow whom the dirty tricksters in the White House should have feared.

So how could this be a dull story? In the first place, the secret actions by the Watergate burglars and the foul machinations of Nixon's henchmen are barely exposed as drama. More importantly, the seminal investigative gymnastics of Woodward and Bernstein are skimmed over in favor of a Dustin Hoffman lookalike (Julian Morris) as Woodward (Redford played it in All) looking star struck when Felt begins his covert revelations. More integral is Sandy Smith (Bruce Greenwood) of Time Magazine as felt unloads info on him as well.

While we are left with a Cliff's Notes superficial version of the events leading to Nixon's resignation, we endure the domestic dilemmas of a boozy wife (Diane Lane) disappointed that Felt was passed over for director and a missing daughter, embarrassingly attached to a commune, we find out eventually. In the latter detail rests a better story of how Felt investigated Weatherman activities with a conflict of interest angle related to his daughter. (Reagan commuted Felt's sentence for unauthorized searches).

That is to say, there is so much action in those early '70's related to Tricky Dick that the movie seems to leave behind as it gets the right angles for its many Neeson close-ups. More close-ups of the FBI activity would have been better. All the President's Men and Spotlight are far better giving you the daily details leading to their disclosures.

But, hey, it is instructive to see that 45 years ago, the FBI asserted its independence from the White House. It had a sleazy administration to buck, all the more reason to fight the good fight. If you think there is resonance today with James Comey's firing, then hope for a Deep Throat. Looks like there are candidates already working out there.

This film tells the story of the deputy chief of the FBI, who is not given the promotion that he thought he would get. He then goes on to expose the biggest political scandal of all time.

It is interesting that this film does not concentrate on external events at all, so you don't get to see who the seven people who got arrested are, or what evidence the agents have uncovered. It only deals with what Mark Felt have seen or heard, so most of the film occurs in the office. Because of this, viewers who are unfamiliar with the Watergate scandal will have to read about it in advance in order to fully understand the plot. It is a thrilling story, especially the fact that Mark Felt must have endured enormous pressure during that time, and all the subsequent years of his life.