When a thief is shot dead in Washing DC one night, no one knew that it would lead to a web of corruption deep in the heart of the US Congress. Right at the centre of this breaking story is Congressman Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck) who has been having an affair with one of his staff members who dies due to a suspected suicide at a train station.
Top journalist Cal McAffrey (Russel Crowe) is an old college roommate of Stephen Collins and when Collins approaches Cal with some shocking information Cal vows to investigate and get to the bottom of the misconduct. Therefore Cal sets off to find any information possible to solve this case with the help of young, enthusiastic yet inexperienced journalist Della Frye (Rachel McAdams) however when evidence arises which leads straight back to Collins it seems that things aren’t as straight cut as Cal had first thought.
After being called one of the best thrillers of the year I had been really looking forward to watching State Of Play and after it finally began showing on Sky Box Office on Monday I jumped at the chance to view what everybody else had been writing rave reviews about.
State Of Play starts off at a quick pace with a double murder happening in the first five minutes however from there on things start to go downhill. The film becomes very
slow and bogged down, it seems that the director has chosen an overcomplicated plot to market this film as a tense, clever suspense thriller which this film most certainly is not. Having said that, this film isn’t too difficult to follow it was simply the fact that I found it so dull I quickly lost interest and therefore the plotline became slightly lost on me. I had such high hopes for this film and they were dashed within the first half an hour.
I’m not a huge fan of political thrillers, the whole politics issue is completely lost on me but I am a big fan of thrillers and thought that maybe even if this isn’t right up my street it would still have enough redeemable aspects to it which would lead me to see what everybody else is seeing and enjoy it just as much. The plotline is good though and I suppose if this was a genre that I tend to enjoy it’s likely that I would have been pretty enthralled in this because the story line is full of potential however I feel that this could have been portrayed on screen so much better.
The film just doesn’t seem to flow, the pace seems jerky and erratic and you never know where you are. The story, good as it is isn’t explained well enough for people to get a good idea of what’s happening which in turn leaves the viewer confused and ultimately bored. This isn’t an action based thriller which is what I was hoping for, there are a few scenes where you think that something bigger may happen but these fall flat within minutes of almost happening. If this was an enjoyable and tense thriller then I would be praising it here for it’s lack of action, it’s always admirable when a film of this genre manages to pull off an enjoyable 2 hours of sheer entertainment without the need for the usual obligatory action sequences. This film uses dialogue to tell the story and the lack of action should add to the overall tension and believability factor but it just leaves the film very lacklustre and uninspiring.
Russel Crowe was excellent and it’s the acting from all the cast which ultimately saves this film from being a complete disaster. Crowe is a dogged reporter who wants to get to the bottom of things at all costs. I like how a back-story revolving around him was brought into the proceedings seeing as most of the film revolves around Ben Affleck’s personal life however when Cal’s personal life is brought into question it isn’t well explained and at times I thought it may have just been an accusation as opposed to reality. Crowe really manages to steal the show though and show once again why he is such a highly acclaimed actor. Crowe’s character is highly intelligent and it’s interesting to watch the professional relationship between him and Della progress during the film as he becomes somewhat of a mentor for her. I do think that Crowe’s character was at times a little stereotypical though; the tubby, dishevelled and grumpy reporter is something that has been several times before however Crowe still manages to make the role his own and encapsulate everything that you’d expect his character to be.
Ben Affleck was also good, I’m not the biggest fan of him but credit goes where credit is due and Ben Affleck did a good job of playing the young Congressman with a glittering career ahead of him however his downfall comes from being a little dull and even with information that we discover throughout the course of the film it still doesn’t manage to make the audience care about his character. He also is a little clichéd and stereotypical; the good looking, well spoken and clever politician who has an affair behind his wife’s back.
Helen Mirren, although only playing a supporting role really stole the scenes which she shared with Crowe, she brought in a welcome and much needed comedy element into the balance and made it a much more watchable film. Rachel McAdams was also excellent, at first she seems to be in a little over her head with all the A-List actors but she soon begins to show why she is quickly moving up the ranks. Her character too seems a little lost at first as the rookie reporter however when being mentored by Cal you see a subtle yet significant change to her persona and she yet again manages to pull off a believable performance… is there anything this girl can’t do?
Overall I found the film to be a disappointment considering all the positive praise that it has garnered but to be fair this isn’t my preferred genre so you could say I’m a little biased on that score. I managed to watch it through to the end but I have to admit I was glad when it did end, the film lasts 127 which I personally feel was too long. For me, it was the high standard of acting that saved this film from being a complete washout. If you’re into your political thrillers then I’d say this is definitely worth a watch but if not then steer clear.
The DVD is currently available from play.com for £12.99.
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Production Year: 2002 - Thriller - Director: Bharat Nalluri, Rob Bailey, Andy Wilson - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Matthew MacFadyen, Keeley Hawes, David Oyelowo, Peter Firth, Jenny Agutter, Lisa Faulkner
Thriller - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Timothy West, Neil Morrissey, Tara Fitzgerald, Annette Crosbie, Pauline Quirke, Rob Brydon, Denise Van Outen, John Thomson, Kevin Whately, David Suchet
Advantages: 5 for £10.00 deal for 4 nights at blockbusters... so i didn't feel too ripped off Disadvantages: dull, boring, tedious, un-thrilling (if that's a word), and drawn out.
blissman70 29.10.2009 (29.10.2009)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of State Of Play (DVD)
Advantages: 5 for £10.00 deal for 4 nights at blockbusters... so i didn't feel too ripped off Disadvantages: dull, boring, tedious, un-thrilling (if that's a word), and drawn out.
blissman70 29.10.2009 (29.10.2009)
·
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of State Of Play (DVD)
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