My Review on "The Post" (2017)
"The Post" is a fascinating depiction of secret's that government officials kept from the U.S. public regarding the Vietnam war. The debacle spanned an unprecedented four U.S. Presidents and forced the country's first female newspaper publisher and a highly determined editor to join a historic battle between journalist and government.
I was telling my wife the other day that this film is an excellent example of how real life events are, in many instances, more fascinating than fiction. There is no greater director to tackle such heavy subject matter than Mr. Steven Spielberg. I read some lukewarm reviews regarding his production here while others are giving it the praise it actually deserves; I'd like to weigh in on the significance of "The Post", not only from a Technical stand-point but, also through eyes of someone who truly appreciate the things that we can learn from history.
Image being an ordinary citizen one day, taking your kids to school and preparing dinner to then being thrown into a situation where you are the sole decision maker for your spouses company after their untimely death. To add to this pressure, this happens during a time in history where women are not looked upon or respected as high ranking decision makers over companies or in government; this is the situation for Ms. Katharine Meyer "Kay" Graham (Meryl Streep) the widow of Mr. Philip Graham, Chief Publisher at The Washington Post.
"The Post" (2018) Meryl Streep
Kay Graham's situation takes place during a time where War and politics ruled the newspapers, the newspapers governed public perception, scandals were abound and giants fell. As always, Meryl Streep delivers, this time under the aw-inspiring Directing of Spielberg. She is aided by a superb cast lead by Tom Hanks as Ben Bradlee, Sarah Paulson as Antoinette "Tony" Pinchot, Bradlee Bob Odenkirk as Ben Bagdikian, Tracy Letts as Fritz Beebe, Bradley Whitford as Arthur Parsons and Bruce Greenwood as Robert McNamara.
The mastery of this depiction is that we are given an honest glimpse into the intimate relationships between Journalism, Media and Government. Spielberg manages to juggle these relationships in detail showing the pressure that is put on all parties from the President of the United States all the way to Ms. Graham and everyone in between. The cinematography also moves the story along quite intensely as the camera crew bounces us between the streets of a New York and Washington D.C. in the 1970's. We are given intimate scenes of Ms. Grahams struggle with the pressure staying true to honest journalism while standing the face of the possibility of losing everything. The film shares with its audience bravery at it's finest from her and the team of journalists. She does all this while working on making the company go public to save it from financial ruin. Ms. Graham's quite strength exudes throughout the film.
The director and crew of this film handled the details with respect, honesty and integrity. We are left to appreciate the boldness of the lead character and the significance of doing what is right.
In the end you just might be exhausted but, "The Post" most certainly provides an entertaining journey, hats off to this amazing individual who rose to the occasion when insurmountable odds were stacked against her.
Go see it! It's a great historical piece.
AV3 Out...
