Unexpectedly, this film only lasts one and a half hours.
This film is low-key and old-school. The calm plot, serious characters, black-and-white shots, and simple editing are all incompatible with today's entertainment trends. Maybe I have been nostalgic lately, and I like such a simple style, old-school but not old-fashioned movies.
The film is directed by George Clooney, and the history of the CBS News team headed by Edward R. Murrow against McCarthyism in the 1950s unfolds. For me, it is not George Clooney that attracts, but Edward Murrow. Although affected by certain factors, I have always preferred ABC, but Edward Murrow, Fred Friendly, and the beliefs, ideals and courage of their generation of journalists , Like an unreachable legend.
Ideals, reality, news, politics, media, government... It seems that in any era, in any country, there are conflicts and contradictions. I don't know how the American press and society will feel when they re-examine the history of this film and look back at themselves. But in any case, Murrow and CBS used the social influence of news to defend the honor of news and create an era.
I originally thought that telling the story of such a "news man challenging the senator" would be full of exciting confrontations, ups and downs, and dramatic plots. Unexpectedly, its structure is very simple, just a flashback structure, from 1958 A dinner party aimed at commending Murrow started. Using Murrow's own speech as a wedge, he led the audience back to the CBS newsroom in 1953, and made them pay attention to the news: an Air Force captain was unwilling to criticize someone suspected of communism. Father and sister were expelled from the military. Then came the series of the four See it Now topics around McCarthy, and finally returned to the dinner party, let Murrow's speech continue, and ended with the signature concluding sentence "Good night, and Good luck". The whole narrative is very plain, like a news documentary, even if it talks about the suicide of the reporter Don Hollenbeck, it is also expressed in a Matter of fact approach. However, this does not mean that the film lacks dramatic tension. On the contrary, the invisible pressure and tense atmosphere are unknowingly brought to the audience through various details. For example, after finishing the McCarthy topic, the members of the editorial department were excited for the praise of the "New York Times", but Hollenbeck, who was always nervous, was uneasy because another newspaper criticized him (it seems that he values this I didn’t understand the specific reasons for the newspaper comments.) Afterwards, his suicide seemed to be sudden, but there were clues to it.
The connection of the four See it Now programs is very simple-editing and production before the broadcast, the broadcast, the reaction after the broadcast, and the preparation of the theme for the next show. In that smoky studio, there is actually only one central figure, Edward·R.·Murrow. All of McCarthy's clips are historical videos, so the confrontation between Murrow and McCarthy is separated from the TV screen, one in front of the live broadcast and the other in the newsreel. The main scenes are actually Murrow's one-man performances, and they are talking about the camera. This kind of performance is very deceptive to the actors, especially in movies. But David Strathairn played very calmly. The Murrow he played was so wise and calm in front of the live camera, and the small movements and expressions under the camera revealed nervousness and anxiety, even exhaustion and helplessness. The times dictate, and it is also human nature. Makes this role more convincing.
The producer Fred Friendly played by George Clooney is not very important. Although the other supporting roles in the film are few, there are few bad ones. I like the secret couple played by Robert Downey Jr. and Patrcia Clarkson-Joe Wershba and Shirley Wershba (the CBS did not allow office romances at the time, and the two had to be underground couples). Later, I checked the information and found that these supporting actors are almost all excellent members in the history of CBS and even American TV news. Who would know that the reporters and producers who were inconspicuous at the time in the film will later become legends in the press?
By the way, the film is interspersed with the singing of the jazz singer played by Dianne Reeves, as a foil and rendering of emotions, perhaps because the 1950s is an era of jazz, while embellishing the atmosphere of the times, it also relieves the ubiquitous hidden tension. . However, I didn't have much interest in jazz music, nor did I know much about the entertainment tastes at the time. This kind of point-to-point singing is indispensable for me.
This film has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards, including best film in drama, best director, best actor, and best screenplay. But I didn't get any of them. Except for the actor who lost to Capote's Philip Seymour Hoffman, all the others lost to "Broken Arms Mountain", which is a pity. How good is Brokeback Mountain? But I don't seem to have any special interest to watch right now.
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