"The press is for the benefit not of the governors, but of the governed..."
Never a truer word spoken, though a hugely debatable sentiment within today's rather one-eyed, less than transparent media, I'd suggest.
I'm sure I'm not alone in welcoming the return of the master of popular story telling, Steven Spielberg.
His latest piece, The Post, chronicles the uber-tense set of circumstances leading up to the enormously brave decision by the 'Free Press' to publish a huge number of leaked documents revealing successive U.S Governments' cover up of the truth behind the Vietnam War.
Daniel Ellsberg, an American military journalist stationed in the thick of the combat, returns to his homeland determined that the U.S Government's on-going thirty year deception of its public should no longer be allowed to continue, and makes the bold decision to make available reams of classified national defence information to The New York Times, who in turn proceed to publish many of the files.
This is indeed a courageous move for both Ellsberg and The New York Times, but one which will soon be closed down by way of a court injunction.
Meanwhile, the new Editor of The Washington Post, Ben Bradlee (a slightly darker role for the usually squeaky clean Tom Hanks), is determined to make a splash for his paper, and despite the injunction hanging over all of the country's press, when opportunity presents itself, he is undeterred and decides, against much legal advice, that The Washington Post will show no reluctance in publishing more of this classified content.
This is all well and good, but Bradlee's decisions must be approved by not only a board of directors, but more importantly, by the paper's slightly reluctant owner, Kay Graham (a top drawer performance from the ever reliable Meryl Streep).
Such a predicament will inevitably lead to much hand-wringing and soul searching.
Set to the backdrop of civil unrest and a rapidly swelling anti-war sentiment amongst the people, Spielberg's film is an absolute masterclass in tension and suspense. Not only is this a race against the clock, but a test of nerve and one big collective wrestle with morality. Very much a case of the people versus the State.
We only have to look at the more recent actions of Julian Assange and Edward Snowden for their 'so-called-treachery' against their respective Governements, to know that anarchy, the distrust of authority and the quest for justice are very much alive and well in modern society, but the revelation of The Pentagon Papers (as the leaked Vietnam files were to become known), was, in 1970, a somewhat unprecedented action, and one that raised the moral dilemma: To whom must one be more dutiful? To the people, or to one's own Government?
This painfully awkward scenario is quite brilliantly captured by the cast, but in particular through the performances of Hanks, and especially Meryl Streep.
Streep's portrayal of Kay Graham is one of a woman who initially, despite being the Paper's owner - albeit by default - seems to lack authority amongst her peers, and the courage of her own convictions in such a male-dominated environment. However, over the course of the film, she gradually grows into the role and the responsibility that it entails, and in the face of huge opposition by much of her paper's board of directors, she wrestles gamely with her own conscience, all too aware of the potential implications, to ultimately come to what she feels to be the right decision.
It's a superb, nuanced portrayal of a gradually empowered woman who never sacrifices principles to gain authority.
Spielberg once again teams up with legendary composer John Williams, whose score is bold and influential, yet never overpowering. Just another example of the pair's perfectly complimentary partnership in film.
The Post is a piece that examines morality and just what it means to uphold the Constitution of the U.S.A in the face of potential severe national threat, and it's all done with Spielberg's trademark energy, heart and quite brilliant characterisation.
A must see.
This and hundreds of other films are reviewed on my WarwardWolfBlog
Never a truer word spoken, though a hugely debatable sentiment within today's rather one-eyed, less than transparent media, I'd suggest.
I'm sure I'm not alone in welcoming the return of the master of popular story telling, Steven Spielberg.
His latest piece, The Post, chronicles the uber-tense set of circumstances leading up to the enormously brave decision by the 'Free Press' to publish a huge number of leaked documents revealing successive U.S Governments' cover up of the truth behind the Vietnam War.
Daniel Ellsberg, an American military journalist stationed in the thick of the combat, returns to his homeland determined that the U.S Government's on-going thirty year deception of its public should no longer be allowed to continue, and makes the bold decision to make available reams of classified national defence information to The New York Times, who in turn proceed to publish many of the files.
This is indeed a courageous move for both Ellsberg and The New York Times, but one which will soon be closed down by way of a court injunction.
Meanwhile, the new Editor of The Washington Post, Ben Bradlee (a slightly darker role for the usually squeaky clean Tom Hanks), is determined to make a splash for his paper, and despite the injunction hanging over all of the country's press, when opportunity presents itself, he is undeterred and decides, against much legal advice, that The Washington Post will show no reluctance in publishing more of this classified content.
This is all well and good, but Bradlee's decisions must be approved by not only a board of directors, but more importantly, by the paper's slightly reluctant owner, Kay Graham (a top drawer performance from the ever reliable Meryl Streep).
Such a predicament will inevitably lead to much hand-wringing and soul searching.
Set to the backdrop of civil unrest and a rapidly swelling anti-war sentiment amongst the people, Spielberg's film is an absolute masterclass in tension and suspense. Not only is this a race against the clock, but a test of nerve and one big collective wrestle with morality. Very much a case of the people versus the State.
We only have to look at the more recent actions of Julian Assange and Edward Snowden for their 'so-called-treachery' against their respective Governements, to know that anarchy, the distrust of authority and the quest for justice are very much alive and well in modern society, but the revelation of The Pentagon Papers (as the leaked Vietnam files were to become known), was, in 1970, a somewhat unprecedented action, and one that raised the moral dilemma: To whom must one be more dutiful? To the people, or to one's own Government?
This painfully awkward scenario is quite brilliantly captured by the cast, but in particular through the performances of Hanks, and especially Meryl Streep.
Streep's portrayal of Kay Graham is one of a woman who initially, despite being the Paper's owner - albeit by default - seems to lack authority amongst her peers, and the courage of her own convictions in such a male-dominated environment. However, over the course of the film, she gradually grows into the role and the responsibility that it entails, and in the face of huge opposition by much of her paper's board of directors, she wrestles gamely with her own conscience, all too aware of the potential implications, to ultimately come to what she feels to be the right decision.
It's a superb, nuanced portrayal of a gradually empowered woman who never sacrifices principles to gain authority.
Spielberg once again teams up with legendary composer John Williams, whose score is bold and influential, yet never overpowering. Just another example of the pair's perfectly complimentary partnership in film.
The Post is a piece that examines morality and just what it means to uphold the Constitution of the U.S.A in the face of potential severe national threat, and it's all done with Spielberg's trademark energy, heart and quite brilliant characterisation.
A must see.
This and hundreds of other films are reviewed on my WarwardWolfBlog