1971

2014
Unrated
1h 19m

IMDb RATING

7.3/10

926

YOUR RATING

Play trailer1:48

2 Videos

1 Photo

Documentary History Thriller

The story of a notorious 1971 activist burglary of an FBI office that led to the Bureau's numerous abuses against dissidents being exposed.The story of a notorious 1971 activist burglary of an FBI office that led to the Bureau's numerous abuses against dissidents being exposed.The story of a notorious 1971 activist burglary of an FBI office that led to the Bureau's numerous abuses against dissidents being exposed.

Director
- Johanna Hamilton
Writers
- Johanna Hamilton
- Gabriel Rhodes
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.3/10

926

YOUR RATING

Director
- Johanna Hamilton
Writers
- Johanna Hamilton
- Gabriel Rhodes
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 3 wins & 3 nominations total

Videos2

Photos

Top cast39

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Bonnie Raines

Self - Citizens' Commission
(as Bonnie)

John Raines

Self - Citizens' Commission
(as John)

Bob Williamson

Self - Citizens' Commission
(as Bob)

Keith Forsyth

Self - Citizens' Commission
(as Keith)

Bill Davidon

Self - Citizens' Commission
(as Bill)

Betty Medsger

Self - Reporter, The Washington Post

Terry Neist

Self - Former FBI Agent

Athan Theoharis

Self - Professor of History, Marquette University

J. Edgar Hoover

Self - Director of the FBI
(archive footage)

Sanford Ungar

Self - Journalist

Ben Bradlee

Self - Executive Editor, The Washington Post
(archive footage)
(as Benjamin C. Bradlee)

Katharine Graham

Self - Publisher, The Washington Post
(archive footage)

George McGovern

Self - Senator, South Dakota
(archive footage)

Bob Dole

Self - Senator, Kansas
(archive footage)

Richard Nixon

Self - 37th President of the United States
(archive footage)

Neil Welch

Self - Former FBI Agent
(archive footage)
(voice)

Anne Flitcraft

Self

David Kairys

Self - Civil Rights Lawyer

Director
- Johanna Hamilton
Writers
- Johanna Hamilton
- Gabriel Rhodes
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Goofs
In the recreation of the crime scene which occurs during the Ali - Frazier fight of March 8th 1971, there are cut aways to another person in the building watching the fight. The fight was closed circuit only, and there was no cable TV in 1971, so anybody wanting to see the fight live either had to be in the arena or in theaters and auditoriums broadcasting the fight for a fee.

Connections
Featured in Cameraperson (2016)

Soundtracks
I Spy (For The F.B.I.)
Performed by Luther Ingram & The G-Men
Smash Records
Re-released in 1971 following the revelations of the Media Buglary

User reviews9

Featured review

8/10

Good, but oh, those reconstructions!

Having lived through this period, and remembering a lot of it well, the film was something of a nostalgia trip for me, and a terrific companion piece to Betty Medsger's excellent book. (Wish we'd seen more of her.)

But why oh WHY do documentary filmmakers feel it necessary to use reconstructions with actors, as here? They are not only distracting (and perhaps confusing - ?), they suggest that the director does not trust her witnesses, who are FAR more interesting to watch and listen to than the dully animated wallpaper of the reconstructions.

For a purist like me, such tricks make me distrust the veracity of the material, but then I'm an old school documentarian, and growing more curmudgeonly with the passing of the years.

p.