I was watching an interview on "Ellen" with Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep a couple weeks ago. As they were talking, Ellen brought up the fact that Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep had never starred in a movie together! I couldn't believe it. Someone must have noticed (namely, Steven Spielberg), as they finally got together in the historical drama "The Post". Do yourself a favor and check out this movie.
The film centers around Kay Graham (Meryl Streep), the owner of the Washington Post, and editor Ben Bradlee (Tom Hanks). The film follows the story of how the staff of the Washington Post discovers documents containing years of government secrets related to the Vietnam War. You have probably heard them referred to as the Pentagon Papers. Graham grapples with whether or not to publish the papers in the Washington Post and considers the potential implications.
Director Steven Spielberg leads a stellar cast and produces another movie that is truly a work of art. John Williams even composed the score. For more information about the film and the rest of the cast, check out IMDB.
This film has relevant commentary to the culture and society we're living in.
This film was directed by one of my favorite directors and stars two of my all-time favorite actors, so of course, I had to see it. The movie has been critically acclaimed - it recently even scored some Oscar nods. It was nominated for Best Picture and Meryl Streep was nominated (again) for Best Actress.
In case you missed it, "The Post" was also nominated for the Golden Globe Best Picture, along with some others. Meryl Streep was nominated for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture Drama and Tom Hanks was nominated for the same actor category. Steven Spielberg even got nominated for directing.
Ultimately, I felt that the film's performance as an ensemble was strong. Streep was perfectly complex as Graham. It wasn't my favorite Tom Hanks performance, though he definitely had the appropriate energy for his character. They played off each other well and found the nuances in the situation that Graham and Bradlee handled.
The production design was incredible and transports you to the newspaper and government world of the '60s and '70s. I'm a little surprised that it didn't get much more as far as Oscar recognition goes, but the film's worth goes beyond any potential awards.
"The Post" sheds light on a conversation we need to keep having as a society.
Essentially, "The Post" creates a commentary centered around the idea of free speech. Graham and Bradlee had to decide how to walk the fine line between publishing highly impactful information to the public and maintaining government confidentiality.
Spoiler alert: ultimately, Graham decides that the newspaper's duty is to the public and not to protect the government.
It seemed at times as though this film was politically responsive, but in the context of the issues we continue to grapple with this film has a place. We are still dealing with the ideas of free speech and hate speech and who has the right to say what. Perhaps even more importantly, I think the main takeaway from this film is that the media serves the people, not the government.
There is a vital place for media in a functioning democracy, though we have to be educated enough to critically evaluate bias and understand information in order to find the truth. If these issues matter to you (and they should), then check out this little piece of important history nicely packaged in a star-studded film.
