Each year delivers at least one interesting journalism drama worth talking about.
Movies like Shattered Glass, State of Play and Frost/Nixon balance an intricate narrative with interesting themes to varying degrees of success.
Spotlight, however, broke the mould, detailing a shocking account of the Boston Globe’s investigation into the Catholic Church.
The Post is 2018’s entry into the genre and, although falling short of the aforementioned Best Picture winner, is worth a look.
The story begins during the Vietnam War, as State Department military analyst Daniel Ellsberg (Matthew Rhys) steals top secret documents from Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara (Bruce Greenwood) in 1965.
Ellsberg’s act was noticed by the New York Times who then published the documents for the world to see.
Meanwhile, at the Washington Post, hotshot editor Ben Bradlee (Tom Hanks) feels inclined to follow the rival paper’s footsteps.
Director Steven Spielberg seems most interested in Hanks and his character’s journey.
The newsroom scenes are delightful, with Spielberg getting a kick out of watching Hanks, Bob Odenkirk, David Cross, Carrie Coon, Tracy Letts, and Pat Healy bounce off one another.
The famous filmmaker views news and the newsroom through a rose-tinted lens – journeying back in time to the pioneering era of print journalism.
As Bradlee flicks through pages and tracks down leads, Washington Post heiress Katharine Graham (Meryl Streep) struggles to confront the paper’s slew of male boardmembers.
Spielberg goes above-and-beyond to humanise dense sequences of boardroom chatter and decision making. Of course, hiring the world’s most acclaimed actress certainly helped.
The Post sparkles when its central plot-threads collide.
Bolstered by Hanks and Streep’s charms, their scenes put both characters on edge and pull them closer together simultaneously.
In these troubled times – in which the Trump Administration sees almost all media coverage as leftist and ungrateful – this story is more important than ever.
Without being too rough on the new-ish Commander-in-Chief, Spielberg illustrates the value of truth-seeking, fact-focused journalism.
His latest feature is a valuable addition to the journo-drama genre, and serves as a strong contender come Oscar time.
