Movie titles are a tricky thing. So far, the film about Mark Felt, the man who anonymously provided critical intel to reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein about the Watergate scandal that helped bring down Richard Nixon has been called “Felt” and “The Silent Man.” But it appears that the folks behind drama are worried about that those titles are too vague, so now they’re running with the overly explicit “Mark Felt — The Man Who Brought Down The White House,” which sounds like lead star Liam Neeson, is going to punch Nixon in the throat before the credits roll.
Written and directed by Peter Landesman (“Parkland,” “Concussion“), the movie will detail the Watergate drama, but also the home life of Mark Felt, who worked in the shadows to expose just how far the corruption ran in the Nixon White House.
“In order to save the FBI from the corruptions of the Nixon administration and save the country, he had to betray the FBI’s deepest code, which was classified material and ongoing investigations have to be protected,” Landesman told USA Today. “He realized that Nixon was going to get away with it. The FBI’s reputation as a last line of defense was completely imperiled, so he betrayed the FBI to save the FBI.” Here’s the official synopsis:
Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House centers on “Deep Throat”, the pseudonym given to the notorious whistleblower for one of the greatest scandals of all time, Watergate. The true identity of the secret informant remained a mystery and source of much public curiosity and speculation for more than 30 years. That is until, in 2005, special agent Mark Felt shockingly revealed himself as the tipster. This unbelievable true story chronicles the personal and professional life of the brilliant and uncompromising Felt, who risked and ultimately sacrificed everything – his family, his career, his freedom – in the name of justice.
Co-starring Diane Lane, Marton Csokas, Josh Lucas, Tony Goldwyn, Michael C. Hall, Tom Sizemore, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Ike Barinholtz, Bruce Greenwood, Brian D’Arcy James, Kate Walsh, Noah Wyle, and Maike Monroe, “Mark Felt — The Man Who Brought Down The White House” opens on September 29th, and will premiere at TIFF.
