What The Hell is a Newspaper?

I know I still get one delivered every morning.   Granted it's the Los Angeles Times, which means I only read the sports page, the entertainment news, and the funnies.   Oh, and where would I be without my morning Sudoku?

"The Post" is set in 1971 and details the Washington Post's attempts to print the famed Daniel Ellsberg Pentagon Papers which detailed just how fucked up America's participation in the Vietnam war was.  Indeed, Ellsberg is a predecessor to the likes of Julian Assange, just in case you thought the latter invented the leaking of secret government documents.

Given that "The Post" features such politically-active stars as Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks and is directed by a well-known liberal Steven Spielberg, you would think that this movie has a hidden agenda.  But, amazingly, the film is straight forward, unbiased, and can be easily enjoyed by movie goers on both sides of the aisle.   That's a terrific feat for anybody producing a mainstream in Hollywood today.

The famed Pentagon Papers controversy came out a year before the Watergate break-in that put the Washington Post on the map thanks to Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, detailed so beautifully in one of my favorite movies, "All The President's Men."   Indeed, editor Ben Bradlee, portrayed here by Hanks in a role that previously netted Jason Robards Jr. an Oscar, is a major character again.   I did prefer Robards over Hanks, but I also liked Warner Oland better than Roland Winters as Charlie Chan, so a moot point.  Nevertheless, Bradlee is a commanding figure as he battles publisher Katharine Graham over whether the paper has an obligation to print leaked secret documents.   I guess this was a big deal back in 1971.  Now, not so much.

With apologies to Donald Trump, Meryl Streep is absolutely marvelous as Graham and her dilemma whether to publish given she has no friends in government is one that will have you feeling her pain every inch of the way.  She remains one of the finest actors working in America today.   I mean, watch her do this role and then revisit her work as Margaret Thatcher a few years back.   You'll be in awe all over again.

"The Post," which is totally devoid of action or chase scenes, still holds your attention every frame.  It is peppered with lots of recognizable character actors with some very unrecognizable wigs and make-up.  The versatile Bruce Greenwood, for instance, plays Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara and I can remember when he also played President John F. Kennedy.   Obviously, he is slowly making his way through that cabinet.

Okay, Spielberg does use a moment at the end of the film to scold current President Donald Trump on his hatred of the media journalists, who are sadly all biased these days.    But the device actually backfires.   In "The Post," there is a judgment handed down by the Supreme Court that effectively says the media is there to protect the governed, not the governors.   

Hmmm....

Regardless, I liked the film.  Now I must admit that I am a complete sucker for movies about the newspaper business.   Along with the aforementioned President's Men, I loved "Spotlight."  And, hell, I have been binge watching all five seasons of the marvelous "Lou Grant" TV show on Hulu.   That said, "The Post" is just flat out a terrific film, even if you don't know what a newspaper is.

To think that there are some folks who never experienced that ink on their fingers...

LEN'S RATING:  Three-and-a-half stars.

Dinner last night:  Angel hair pasta with meat sauce.