Taking place during the early days of broadcast journalism in 1950’s America, a chronicle of the real-life conflict between television news man Edward R. Murrow and Senator Joseph McCarthy and the House Un-American Activities Committee. With a desire to report the facts and enlighten the public, Murrow, and his dedicated staff--headed by his producer Fred Friendly and Joe Wershba in the CBS newsroom--defy corporate and sponsorship pressures to examine the lies and scaremongering tactics perpetrated by McCarthy during his communist witch-hunts. A very public feud develops when the Senator responds by accusing the anchor of being a communist. In this climate of fear and reprisal, the CBS crew carries on regardless and their tenacity eventually pays off when McCarthy is brought before the Senate and made powerless as his lies and bullying tactics are finally uncovered.

I wonder if you can read too much between the lines when seeing a movie and if so I am guilty of doing such. I am a very political person, I can and will argue politics with you for hours and when I see a movie that has very many political situations, I cannot help but making them relevant to my own time which is what I think George Clooney who is also very political wants me to do and does it such a subtle way that it is magnificent. It was this reading in between the lines and my ability to make the movie relevant to current political situations that made the movie so enjoyable for me. I love this in a movie the foreshadowing of modern events is so subtle that those who aren’t political can enjoy the movie for the movie and for those who are political can make these enormous leaps of why the movie means so much to them. It’s the best of both worlds, the movie is almost like a living history class and it may shine insight for you on how important the media was when they were more interested in just telling the news. It also may shine light on how this power and it was a power that brought a senator to its knees has corrupted the minds of the media where they think they are so powerful that they can shape the events of the world on how they want them to be. No longer is the news and media about shining light into dark corners and telling the news, its now about sensationalism and influencing others to share the same views. How can you not feel the power of movie that shows that and lets us glimpse into the birth of modern media.

Another key element to the story is how through fear Joseph McCarthy managed to nearly stranglehold a nation that found itself looking under their beds for communists and supposed communist. The Joseph McCarthy trials were like the modern day version of the Salem Witch trials which makes me think of a famous quote ” those who fail to learn from history's mistakes are bound to repeat them.” Does this sound familiar with today’s political situations of the patriot act and us now instead of looking under our bed’s for supposed communists instead checking out closets for supposed terrorists. Much like the McCarthy trials where proof was hidden in an envelope never opened you under the patriot acts could be held without trial, nor burden of guilt if your neighbor decided to turn on you. I think Clooney much like Edward R. Murrow did during the fifties is trying to take on the establishment and make them responsible for their actions and who’s to blame him, I personally applaud him while others will complain that he is pushing his agenda on you. But like Murrow did during the evening news he presents the facts and lets you decide whether they have merit or not.

The movie puts together a pretty impressive cast but these movie is more David Strathairn than anyone else. Much like how McCarthy honed in on Murrow the movie also hones in on David Strathairn’s performance because it is him that must carry the movie and he does so with ease. George Clooney, Robert Downey Jr, and Patricia Clarkson all do their parts and add some spice to the movie but it is David Strathairn’s performance that is the meat and potatoes of the movie. It helps that the movie is based on history and that it gives somewhat of a history lesson but that takes nothing away from the performances that are given. I am beginning to really like Clooney more as a director than an actor because he has a subtlety and sense of style that are just marvelous in his movies. The movie can be slow at times in the middle but it is worth a lot of the praise that it is getting as well.

Grade: B+