ReelBob: ‘Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House’ ★★
By Bob Bloom
Those hoping that “Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House” is dominated by scenes of the then-FBI deputy associate director talking in dark garages with an actor portraying “The Washington Post’s” Bob Woodward will be sorely disappointed.
Overall, in fact, the movie is a letdown.
Considering the subject matter — in 2005, Felt revealed that he was the mysterious “Deep Throat” who fed information about the Watergate scandal to Woodward — “Mark Felt” should have been a tension-filled drama.
Instead, it is a tepid retelling of Watergate, as seen through the eyes of an FBI official who was aghast at the way his law-enforcement organization was being politicized by a president for his own protection. (And, yes, that scenario does have familiar and contemporary connotations.)
Writer-director Peter Landesman tells his story in such a bland manner that it plays more like a written high-school history report than a flesh-and-blood movie.
“Mark Felt” basically features characters standing in rooms, sitting behind desks or furtively meeting in out-of-the-way diners or garages, whispering in urgent, and sometimes conspiratorial tones.
The movie lacks intensity while covering one of the most dramatic constitutional crises that befell the nation.
Felt was second-in-command to J. Edgar Hoover, and the film opens with Felt squaring off against Nixon administration officials who want to dump Hoover.
The direct-speaking Felt reminds them about Hoover’s private and confidential files, and the matter is dropped.
After Hoover’s death, Felt orders those files destroyed. He then denies their existence to Nixon-appointed interim FBI director L. Patrick Gray.
After the Watergate break-in, Felt must continually remind Gray that the FBI is an independent law-enforcement agency and is beholden to no administration.
When he sees that Gray is too weak to fight the White House, Felt, knowing his beloved agency is compromised, takes the initiative and begins leaking information to Woodward and a “Time” magazine reporter.
The film tries to build suspense by having various people suspect Felt is the leaker, but no one is able to prove it or has the courage to confront him.
Also derailing the movie is the sequences focusing on Felt’s domestic situation. His wife, Audrey, is a bitter woman who wants her husband to resign. She resents his sense of duty and him for the sacrifices she was called on to make, while he rose through the FBI’s ranks.
As Felt, Liam Neeson is ramrod stalwart — period. He barks at subordinates and stews over the administration’s perfidies. Landesman and Neeson adopt an almost holier-than-thou, rigid persona for Felt. He seems more a symbol — an Old Testament avenging angel — than a fleshed-out human being.
“Mark Felt” is bleak and colorless — in tone and in presentation.
It actually does a disservice to an individual who went against his own moral code to protect our nation from enemies within.
It would be reassuring to know whether such men are watching over us today.
I am a member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. My reviews appear at ReelBob (reelbob.com) and Rottentomatoes (www.rottentomatoes.com). I also review Blu-rays and DVDs. I can be reached by email at bobbloomjc@gmail.com or on Twitter @ReelBobBloom. Links to my reviews can be found on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn.
MARK FELT: THE MAN WHO BROUGHT DOWN THE WHITE HOUSE
2 stars out of 4
(PG-13), language