Scandals fascinate us. The characters are fearless and their actions are audacious; best of all, you can’t wait for them to get their comeuppance. Here are three classic films that deftly deal with some of the most complex and notorious scandals of the twentieth century.
Robert Redford’s Quiz Show (1994) looks at one of the biggest scandals in television history. It’s 1958, and the game show “Twenty-One” is all the rage. Reigning champion Herbert Stempel (John Turturro) is brilliant but uncharismatic; enter Charles Van Doren (Ralph Fiennes), the handsome son of a novelist and a poet who beats Stempel and goes on to win game after game and charm the audience in the process. The hitch: Stempel’s loss, and Van Doren’s winning streak are rigged, and accusations that the show was fixed attracts the attention of Congressional investigator Richard Goodwin (Rob Morrow).
Eight Men Out (1988) examines the infamous Black Sox scandal in baseball. It’s 1919, and seven ballplayers with the Chicago White Sox are bribed to throw the World Series and lose to the Cincinnati Reds for more money than they would have won for winning. Fans are shocked, sportswriters are suspicious, and eventually the entire episode is uncovered and eight ballplayers are banned from the sport for life. John Sayles directs a talented crew, including David Strathairn, Charlie Sheen, D.B. Sweeney and Christopher Lloyd. However, the star is John Cusack as Buck Weaver, who didn’t throw any games but whose implication in the scandal made him the eighth man out.
All the President’s Men (1976) tells the story of perhaps the biggest cover-up in the twentieth century: Watergate. It’s 1972, and Bob Woodward (Robert Redford) and Carl Bernstein (Dustin Hoffman) are reporters with the Washington Post whose investigation of a break-in at the Watergate Hotel eventually leads to a trail of corruption and cover-ups that ends at the Nixon White House. Sharp writing and stellar performances from the supporting cast, including Jason Robards, Jack Warden, Jane Alexander (in an Oscar-winning role) and Hal Holbrook as Deep Throat make this a compelling story that deserves a spot on the American Film Institute’s 100 Years…100 Movies.
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