After Years of Illicit Behavior, a News Empire is Exposed

Charlize Theron and Liv Hewson in "Bombshell"
Photo Credit: RottenTomatoes.com 

Over the last decade, director Jay Roach has found success in bringing us several television films  that focus on topical political stories, such as “Recount,” which dealt with 2000 presidential election; “Game Change,” which focused on presidential candidate John McCain and his running mate, Sarah Palin; and “All the Way,” which dealt with Lyndon B. Johnson’s presidency.  He also gave us the theatrical films “The Campaign,” a fictional political comedy about a congressional race; and “Trumbo,” the true story of screenwriter Dalton Trumbo being blacklisted for his involvement with the Communist Party of the USA.

His latest film, “Bombshell,” deals with one of the biggest news breaks of the past few years, once again bringing an extensive and talented cast to dive into the complexities of a story that show us the details of what were once secrets of a major news corporation.

In 2016, Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly (Charlize Theron) faces backlash over an interview in which she confronts Donald Trump over his comments about women.  Meanwhile, “Fox and Friends” co-anchor Gretchen Carlson (Nicole Kidman) prepares to file a harassment suit against Fox News head Roger Ailes (John Lithgow).  During all of this, Kayla Pospisil (Margot Robbie), a new hire at Fox, works hard to assimilate into her job, but then becomes the latest victim of Ailes' sexual advances.  Megyn, Gretchen, and Kayla’s stories soon intersect as they try to put a stop to the long-running series of harassments that have impacted many at the network.

Theron provides a chameleonic performance as Kelly, immersing herself in a role that shows us a character who’s conflicted between admitting to the wrongdoings of Fox and keeping her job.  Theron exhibits the weight that the situation has on Kelly, showing someone who’s always under a microscope and inundated with opinions of others on how she should handle herself in her career and throughout the momentous events of the film.  Theron shows Kelly having a million thoughts race through her head as she tries to figure out what to do, and thanks to Theron’s commitment to the role, Kelly’s uncertainty of what to do keeps us absorbed as she moves toward making some of the most important decisions of her life.

Kidman shows Carlson as someone who knows everything that she needs to accomplish in order to win her case, giving her character an energy of never intending to back down from the fight.  In regard to what she plans to do, hesitation never crosses her mind, and Kidman presents someone whose confidence presents glimmers of hope to those who soon come forward and reveal the harassment that they endured. 

Robbie, who portrays a composite character, exhibits an individual who’s trying to do her best at her new job, only to then have her eyes opened to the true nature of her workplace after having a disturbing encounter with Ailes.  To see her go through that meeting is heartbreaking to witness, and Robbie brings plenty of emotion as her character goes from bright-eyed ambition to confusion as Kayla tries to figure out whether or not to come forward.  With Robbie’s  performance, she brings to life someone who’s trying to find her voice, and then uses that voice at a crucial time.

Lithgow provides unsettling work as the predatory Ailes, managing to get under your skin because you know what this character is capable of, managing to make you shiver in Ailes’ quiet moments every bit as much as those where he loses his temper.  Lithgow makes you shake your head in disgust and recoil in your seat as he brings out Ailes’ cruelty, and you sit there waiting to see him get what’s coming to him and feel relieved when he does.

The movie comes equipped with a cast of many other talented performers.  Although a lot of the secondary characters are each only given a few minutes of screen time because of how big the ensemble is, they all still make the most out of their time on screen.  However, one supporting cast member who’s given quite a few scenes is Kate McKinnon, who plays Kayla’s coworker, Jess Carr.  After being on “Saturday Night Live” for several years and having prominent roles in several comedy films, she’s given a chance to show some glimmers of potential in terms of her dramatic talent.  It’s a performance that’s more poignant than I thought it would be, and that aspect mixes well with the bits of humor that McKinnon brings to the role.

The movie could have been a little longer, given that there are many factors that are involved with this story, and at times, it feels as though it’s trying to include too much in its fairly quick runtime, but Charles Randolph’s screenplay does an admirable job in doing what it can to bring this story to moviegoers.  Randolph cowrote “The Big Short” with director Adam McKay, where they focused on the 2007-2008 financial crisis, and he uses the experience of focusing on breaking news to bring us another front-page story.  Despite the movie feeling a little rushed, Randolph is still able to give us an intriguing behind-the-scenes view of Fox News, most notably in the opening scene in which Megyn Kelly addresses the audience and takes us through the hallways and shows the inner workings of the studio.

Although Randolph co-wrote “The Big Short,” which used some well-placed humor to help tell a serious story, he chooses not to incorporate too much humor into his script for “Bombshell,” seeing as this particular story should be told with a more dramatic approach.  There are some bits of humor here and there, but they don’t dilute the seriousness of these true events, allowing Roach to have us feel the oppressive tension of Fox’s work environment, as well as the critical need to disclose the wrongdoing of those who are responsible for the harassment of others, which leads to you feeling proud when more and more women come forward to reveal the guilty parties.

This was a big story to handle, but Roach and his team show confidence in handling this topic.  And, despite some narrative shortcomings, you’ll see that “Bombshell” still provides enough of the explosive force that this story requires.

Grade: B+