Directed by Kevin Macdonald. Starring Russell Crowe, Rachel Macadams, Ben Affleck, Robin Wright Penn, Jason Bateman, Helen Mirren, Jeff Daniels, Harry Lennix, Michael Berresse. Drama/Suspense. Synopsis: An agressive and experienced reporter for a Washington newspaper teams up with a blogger street shooting and the apparent suicide of an aide to a Congressman heading an investigation into the activities of a large private defense contractor. from the online division to unravel the connection between what appears to be a random.
This one is worth your while if you like stories packed with intrigue and several layers of a good story...with a little politics sprinkled on top. Its not quite a classical ensemble cast, but close, and there are several compelling characters and good performances throughout the cast.
The protagonist is Cal (Russell Crowe American Gangster) a reporter whose specialty is investigative journalism. He is working for a Washington paper that is very concerned about its bottom line and Cal is reminded of this everyday by his salty boss (Helen Mirren The Pledge). He is hot on the trail of a strange double shooting in Georgetown which results in the death of a drug dealer and the serious injury of a pizza delivery man. Thinking there is more to the story and smelling a compeling human interest angle, he's calling in favors around town for a little more info., including a buddy on the police force (Harry Lennix Chrystal)
But the big story in Washington is the ongoing Congressional investigation into a major defense contractor-PointCorp-headed by a young congressman from Pennsylvania named Collins (Ben Affleck Boiler Room) and, even more attention-grabbing, her apparent suicide on the eve of the hearing and the uncovering of her affair with the congressman. Well, if you're an astute movie buff, you just might expect these two stories to link up. Know what, you're right, they do. Not only are Cal and Rep. Collins friends from college, but Cal soon unturns some information that leads him to believe that the Congressman's aide just might have been murdered and it just might be related to his street shootings.He reluctantly teams up with a blogger from the online department of the paper (Rachel Macadams) whose initial focus is to exploit Cal's relationship with the Congressman.
I think what makes a good suspense flick-thriller if you will-is that there is, well...suspense in the sense that you become intrigued or involved in the plot and want to see where it goes and how it unfolds. State Of Play definitely does that, primarily because the story is so good for those of us who like intricate plots in addition to the fact that the story lines of this flick are both topical and timeless.
A flick like this can blow up big time without good acting and the acting across the board in this movie.Crowe is a very solid lead actor and he's carried every flick I've seen him in, even those where he doesn't really have to, like State Of Play. I also have to give a shout out to Helen Mirren as a big scene stealer in this one and, dang it, I don't care what they say about you Ben, I've always thought you had very good acting talent-if not big box office appeal as a leading man-and you didn't disappoint me in this one. Robin Wright Penn and Jeff Daniels also make an impact with brief but significant roles.
If you'd like to know what I think-not to be arrogant, but you must at least be curious since you're reading this blog-, I would have to say this is one you should see. No question.
This one is worth your while if you like stories packed with intrigue and several layers of a good story...with a little politics sprinkled on top. Its not quite a classical ensemble cast, but close, and there are several compelling characters and good performances throughout the cast.
The protagonist is Cal (Russell Crowe American Gangster) a reporter whose specialty is investigative journalism. He is working for a Washington paper that is very concerned about its bottom line and Cal is reminded of this everyday by his salty boss (Helen Mirren The Pledge). He is hot on the trail of a strange double shooting in Georgetown which results in the death of a drug dealer and the serious injury of a pizza delivery man. Thinking there is more to the story and smelling a compeling human interest angle, he's calling in favors around town for a little more info., including a buddy on the police force (Harry Lennix Chrystal)
But the big story in Washington is the ongoing Congressional investigation into a major defense contractor-PointCorp-headed by a young congressman from Pennsylvania named Collins (Ben Affleck Boiler Room) and, even more attention-grabbing, her apparent suicide on the eve of the hearing and the uncovering of her affair with the congressman. Well, if you're an astute movie buff, you just might expect these two stories to link up. Know what, you're right, they do. Not only are Cal and Rep. Collins friends from college, but Cal soon unturns some information that leads him to believe that the Congressman's aide just might have been murdered and it just might be related to his street shootings.He reluctantly teams up with a blogger from the online department of the paper (Rachel Macadams) whose initial focus is to exploit Cal's relationship with the Congressman.
I think what makes a good suspense flick-thriller if you will-is that there is, well...suspense in the sense that you become intrigued or involved in the plot and want to see where it goes and how it unfolds. State Of Play definitely does that, primarily because the story is so good for those of us who like intricate plots in addition to the fact that the story lines of this flick are both topical and timeless.
A flick like this can blow up big time without good acting and the acting across the board in this movie.Crowe is a very solid lead actor and he's carried every flick I've seen him in, even those where he doesn't really have to, like State Of Play. I also have to give a shout out to Helen Mirren as a big scene stealer in this one and, dang it, I don't care what they say about you Ben, I've always thought you had very good acting talent-if not big box office appeal as a leading man-and you didn't disappoint me in this one. Robin Wright Penn and Jeff Daniels also make an impact with brief but significant roles.
If you'd like to know what I think-not to be arrogant, but you must at least be curious since you're reading this blog-, I would have to say this is one you should see. No question.
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