Truth (2015) (English Language)

Review

125min

Genre:      Fact-based, Drama

Director:   James Vanderbilt

Cast:        Cate Blanchett, Robert Redford, Topher Grace…and more

Writers:    James Vanderbilt & Mary Mapes

-Synopsis-

Journalistic drama chronicling the events surrounding CBS producer Mary Mapes and anchor Dan Rather’s report about president George W. Bush’s questionable military service and the subsequent backlash that cost them their careers.

Based on the Mary Mapes book Truth & Duty; writer/director James Vanderbilt chooses a real contemporary journalistic drama as his directorial debut, focusing on the political reaction to the 2004 exposé of president George W. Bush’s absenteeism during his time in the Texas Air National Guard, and those who protect the interests of privileged Americans.

But ‘Truth’ sits within the larger context of the state of modern journalism and its role in a free society. The film comes from a clear ideological perspective and tends to preach to the converted about the lack of balance between journalistic integrity and the serving of corporate interests in terms of the mainstream American media… who are of course mostly owned by massive multinational conglomerates.

Featuring solid performances from an ensemble cast led by Cate Blanchett as “60 Minutes” producer Mapes and Robert Redford as veteran news anchor Rather; ‘Truth’ plays like an idealistic ode to the now rare art of investigative journalism, and uses the events surrounding the election as a case study and jumping off point, but as such it can seem slightly biased and no doubt some audiences might question the objectivity of the story.

The narrative is however the major stumbling block which prevents ‘Truth’ from being a compelling drama, specifically when it comes to the balance between an engrossing investigative journalism story and a personal human drama.

Unlike more compelling recent journalism dramas like ‘Spotlight’ and ‘Kill the Messenger’, which have a more centralized focus on the story that then expands to the drama and human cost for the people involved; ‘Truth’ feels like a personal vindication piece for Mary Mapes and Dan Rather, curious since it was the naivety of experienced journalists in handling the evidence and process which put them in the defensive position they should have seen coming.

A story this big with implications for the future of American democracy should be far more compelling than this movie is, but ultimately the narrative choices and execution, which includes predictable emotional cues, all give ‘Truth’ a TV drama feel which is far less engrossing and informative than a documentary would have been.

The Bottom Line…

Despite a solid cast with legendary leads and a fascinating true story with wide-reaching implications, ‘Truth’ is fails to be as engrossing as the source material might suggest thanks to its narrative choices and execution, a human interest story that fails as an investigative journalism drama.

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Similar films you may like (Home Video)

Kill the Messenger (2014)

Jeremy Renner stars in a mid-90s political drama based on the true story California investigative reporter Gary Webb’s shocking exposé of the crack-cocaine trade on the streets of America; after exposing the CIA’s involvement with the Nicaraguan “Contras” selling drugs to fund their violent revolution during the mid 1980s, Webb is persecuted by shadowy figures in the establishment as well as the mainstream media with devastating consequences for his private family life.

Directed by Michael Cuesta and starring Jeremy Renner, Rosemarie DeWitt and Oliver Platt among others.

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