Genre : Drama, Mystery & Suspense
Directed By : Steven Spielberg
Written By : Liz Hannah, Josh Singer
In Theaters : Jan 12, 2018 Wide
Cast : Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, Alison Brie, Carrie Coon, David Cross, Bruce Greenwood
The Post, directed by Steven Spielberg, it’s a historical drama about how the reporters, editors, and publishers of the Washington Post decided to follow the New York Times' lead and publish the top-secret Pentagon Papers in 1971. It tells the story of the Washington Post’s race against time to release damning secret documents that proved the American government had been lying to its people about the Vietnam War, while an unprecedented battle wages on between the Nixon administration and the the press. Faced with insurmountable odds, and against the advice of an army of very expensive lawyers, they pushed ahead. Their reputations, the legacy of the Washington Post, and possible jail time was at risk; but the country’s future was at stake.
Starring Meryl Streep as Post publisher Katherine Graham and Tom Hanks as executive editor Ben Bradlee, the drama is sociopolitically relevant and clearly a response to the current presidential administration's antagonistic relationship with the press. The movie promotes the sanctity of freedom of the press and its ability to expose political deceit and corruption. Graham's character also exemplifies how difficult it used to be (and still is) for female bosses to lead without being second-guessed or undermined. There's not much iffy stuff in the movie except for a few swear words and a quick opening scene that takes place during the Vietnam War. Families who watch together can discuss how the story relates to today and why freedom of the press is an important hallmark of American society.
The biggest power of this movie ,beside the plot, it’s the two main character, Katherine Graham and Ben Bradlee. And as played by Tom Hanks, Bradlee is just what an adversary and an editor should be – decisive, inspirational, and – as he’d like to believe – brave. The sort of unstoppable idealism that he displays is almost impossible to find anymore, regardless of what the story is. In an early scene, he refuses the White House’s demand to assign a different reporter from the usual one to cover the President’s daughter’s wedding. He could simply have agreed and avoided the trouble, but in one of the first of the film’s many rousing moments, he declares, “We cannot let the administration dictate what we can and cannot print.”
By Bradlee’s side is Katharine Graham, played by the great Meryl Streep. Her battles are different. She inherited the newspaper from her late husband, who’d been handed the reins when her own father skipped her as the rightful heir. And she didn’t question his decision. How could she? It was a different time for women. In one poignant dinner party scene, even as one of the most powerful persons in the room, when the men declare that it is time to discuss politics, she excuses herself with the other ladies to gossip about fluff pieces. The events portrayed in The Post may have taken place in the early 1970s, but the themes -- women in power struggling with sexism, the press exposing the president, political cover-ups and corruption -- could have been taken from more recent headlines.
Sign up here with your email
ConversionConversion EmoticonEmoticon