the democratic ideal of the public interest,
by exposing corruption and scandal.
“ Thus we encounter the cynical,
amoral loner, from Kirk Douglas in Ace in
the Hole to Jake Gyllenhall in Nightcrawler,
or the relentless crusading team from All
the President’s Men to Spotlight.”
But it’s the crusading journalist as
intrepid defender of the public interest
that Tinseltown has taken to heart, since
the Watergate scandal of the early 1970s.
The Nixon White House abuse of power
in spades inspired All the President’s Men
which set the gold standard for the role of
journo as Public Hero No. 1.
Latest offering in the genre is the Oscar
winning Spotlight, and its depiction of the
lengths the Boston Globe went to prove the
harrowing extent of child abuse in the city.
And it’s in good company.
The newsroom, bustling, vibrant and
electric, has always been a place of intrigue
and fascination for filmmakers.
So here, in no particular order, is a
choice selection of eight great films that
rate among the best of Hollywood’s take
on the media business.
Network (1976)
unmatched: “Who the hell’s gonna read
the second paragraph?”
Hecht’s play captures in coruscating detail the unscrupulous mindset of
competitive news reporting. Down these
mean streets, a hot-shot reporter must go
has long beat out of sight that great scenesetting cliche of film noir … suddenly the
door burst open and in sashayed a blonde
broad packing some heavy heat.
As Pete Boss, lecturer in film studies
at the University of Buckingham, says,
the journalist is often the sounding board
figure who reflects conflicting mores of
modern society, depending on whether
they appear self-serving, unscrupulous
sensation-mongers, or are seen to act in
Holding the dubious record for the shortest Oscar-winning performance ever, this
film features Beatrice Straight’s turn as a
jilted wife that clocks in at just over five
minutes. And Straight’s winning flush
is buoyed by other strong performances
from Faye Dunaway and William Holden.
They star as executives at a failing TV
network whose attempts to improve ratings lead them into dangerously unethical
territory.
This cynical satire, directed by Sidney
Lumet, charts the rise of news as entertainment. Dunaway’s Diana Christiansen flirts
with danger as she shamelessly exploits the
crazed rantings of a deranged anchorman
and commissions a prime time docu-series
from a group of radical terrorists.
This biting black comedy, though
hilarious, was a tragically accurate prediction of how news broadcasting would
evolve in the 40 years since its release.
s
s
Academy Award winning film Spotlight
portrays the investigation of the Boston
Globe journalists
The Spotlight team
from the Boston
Globe published tens
of articles outlining
their discoveries. The
journalists uncovered
hundreds of cases
of abuse, and the
articles lead to police
investigations and
lawsuits
Anchorman (2004)
Though written off by many as a frat-pack
comedy, looking past the puerile humor
and chauvinistic gags, this is a hilarious
point satire about office politics and gender dynamics in the 70s, and the rise of the
action news format.
Will Ferrell, in the role that has defined
his career, plays Ron Burgundy, a legendary
anchorman for a San Diego news station,
who clashes with newbie Veronica Corningstone, played by Christina Applegate.
A tongue-in-cheek depiction of newsroom politics, that has become a cult classic
since its release in 2004 with its hilariously
apt skewering of the broadcasting business.
All The President’s
Men (1976)
This gripping news room procedural is
Hollywood’s take on the political scandal
of the century. The main characters Bob
Woodward and Carl Bernstein are, in
many ways, the journalistic equivalent of
Starsky and Hutch.
This pair of dogged Washington Post
reporters, played by Dustin Hoffman and
Robert Redford, are the team responsible for
uncovering the Watergate scandal of 1972.
This is a compelling story of how persistent journalistic inquiry broke a momentous
story. At first sight the break-in at the Democratic party HQ in the Watergate Building,
didn’t add up to a hill of beans, when six
penniless Cuban exiles were arrested.
At the court hearing, nothing added
up, expecially the top