BOMBSHELL (2019) – My rating: 8.5/10

Bombshell is a biographical drama directed by Jay Roach and written by Charles Randolph. The film tells the story of Roger Ailes’ sexual harassment affairs during his reign at Fox News and the cover-up that eventually forced him to step down.

A tenacious Roger Ailes (John Lithgow) is the head of Fox News, the primary televised source of conservative politics. He runs the corporation with an iron fist that includes fear and determination. Roger is seen as an icon and only answers to Rupert Murdoch (Malcolm McDowell), who is CEO of the Fox network. The stories of Megyn Kelly (Charlize Theron), Gretchen Carlson (Nicole Kidman), and Kayla Pospisil (Margot Robbie), who are three political anchorwomen employed at Fox are revealed in Bombshell.

Megyn Kelly is one of the most popular anchors/commentators at Fox and is preparing to co-moderate the 2016 Republican debate. On the day of the debate, Megyn becomes sick and throws up, but nevertheless questions Donald Trump on negative comments he made about women. In retaliation, Trump sends out several tweets hurting her reputation.  As a result, Megyn is further ridiculed by reporters and others. One reporter sneaks into Meg and Doug’s home in order to take pictures of their daughter causing her husband, Douglas Brunt (Mark Duplass) to kick him out by force. When Megyn returns to work, Fox hires a security detail to protect her but refuses to go after Trump. Roger, who is a fan of Megyn, becomes paranoid with protecting her and thinks that someone poisoned her the day of the debate.

Meanwhile, Gretchen Carlson is the co-anchor of the popular program “Fox and Friends”, but is taken off and demoted to a less popular show and position. Often Gretchen faces sexist comments by others, on and off the air. Gretchen decides to escalate her situation by hiring legal representation. The lawyers mention that Gretchen should not engage with these newfound enemies then tells her the story of Rudi Bakhtiar who was fired for coming out against her employer who she accused of sexual harassment. The lawyers explain their plan to file a harassment suit against Roger Ailes personally and inform Gretchen that she will need to have other women come out and tell their story.

Kayla Pospisil is the newest hire at Fox, a young conservative from a religious background. She starts off working for Gretchen but is soon offered a position to work for “The O’Reilly Factor”. Gretchen asks Kayla to stay with her and warns her to be careful, but she refuses and questions why she shouldn’t take the job. On her first day, Bill O’Reilly (Kevin Dorff) yells at her and she is consoled by a coworker, Jess Carr (Kate McKinnon). Jess becomes a good friend while Kayla’s situation becomes pretty ugly at Fox.

I thought Bombshell was well laid out, conveying to the audience how one of the biggest sex preditors was caught with his pecker in the mouth of babes.  I think the movie was well-acted and the make-up was phenomenal.  It seems Trump got away with a lot more than just the Iranian crisis.  I’m glad women are coming out and stopping these preditors.  The film received generally favorable reviews, with critics praising the performances of the cast, particularly (Theron, Kidman, Robbie and Lithgow) however they criticized the screenplay and inaccuracies in the storytelling. The film received two nominations at the 77th Golden Globe Awards for Theron and Robbie, four at the 26th Screen Actors Guild Awards for Theron, Robbie and Kidman, as well as Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture and three at the 73rd British Academy Film Awards. I really liked Bombshell, Check It Out!

 

MISS SLOANE (2016) – My rating: 8.5/10

Miss Sloan is not for everyone however it’s still a well done work of art. It’s actually bordering on a Wall Street flick, filled with all the banking lingo, complex deals and fast paced wheeling and dealing we’ve seen in movies like Wolf of Wall Street and the 1987 Michael Douglas Oscar winning, Wall Street. Elizabeth Sloane (Jessica Chastain) is a Washington D.C-based lobbyist who advocates for universal background checks.  Some might deem Miss Sloane as a little slow because there’s a lot of discussions that include fast talking and a lot of legalese.   However, there is a point when the movie connects all the dots and becomes so interesting that it has you sitting on the edge of your seat.  Elizabeth Sloane is a unique character because she will do anything to win.  That wouldn’t mean a whole lot if we were talking about a person who didn’t have a fat IQ and the experience of a 70 year old but that’s not the case here.  Elizabeth Sloane is so far above the norm, most people in the business would have a problem keeping up with her.

Miss Sloane opens up with Elizabeth making the following quote, “The winner plots one step ahead of the opposition, and plays her trump card just after they play theirs.”  This gives you an idea of her mantra used throughout the movie, which is what she chanted to her lawyer.  The law firm Elizabeth is currently representing, wants her and her team, which consist of several in-tern lobbyist, including her friend Jane Molloy, (Alison Pill) to go against toughening gun control laws but Elizabeth is not game.  When approached by Rodolfo Schmidt (Mark Strong), the president of Peterson Wyatt, she decides to switch lanes and quit her current employer to work toward the Heaton-Harris Amendment which would require background checks for those trying to purchase firearms.  After making the transition to Peterson Wyatt and a new team of lobbyists, Elizabeth meets Esme Manucharian, (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) who is the firms authority on gun control. Together they give a brilliant performance that will have you reaching for the tissues. There are so many surprises in this movie, your interest is guaranteed, even if you don’t understand all the lingo.  I enjoyed Miss Sloane and therefore recommend it as highly entertaining and sends a profound message.  As usual, I’ve stopped because of spoilers but there is so much more to Miss Sloane, check it out to see actors like John Lithgow as U.S. Senator Ron M. Sperling and Sam Waterston as George  Dupont.

 

 

THE ACCOUNTANT (2016) – My rating: 9.3/10

The Accountant is an extraordinary thriller, about a very high functioning Autistic child, Christian “Chris” Wolff (Ben Affleck) who is also a mathematical genius.  Chris grows up and becomes a forensic accountant, tracking insider financial deceptions for numerous criminal enterprises brokered to him by a mysterious figure known as “The Voice”, contacting him only by phone.  There are many surprises in this movie and the excitement never ends. I was on the edge of my seat most of the time. I don’t believe there’s anything predictable about this film.  Much care and research had to go into the making of The Accountant.  Watching how Chris compensates for his mental deficiencies to make himself more concise and better able to do what’s necessary to get the job done is nothing short of remarkable.  I was quite impressed with the movie.

As a child, Chris’ parents (Robert C. Treveile and Mary Kraft) took him to the Harbor Neuroscience Institute in New Hampshire, where he was diagnosed with autism and offered residency there. Although Chris bonded with Justine (Alison Wright), the mute daughter of the institute’s director (Jason Davis), his father, a decorated military officer, declined the offer, believing that Chris should overcome the hardships inherent to his condition rather than expect the world to accommodate to them. The pressure of raising a special needs child drove Chris’ mother to abandon him and his younger brother, Braxton (Jake Presley) who were left in their father’s care.

As an adult, Chris is being pursued by Raymond “Ray” King (J.K. Simmons), the director of financial crimes of the Treasury Department, who knows Chris by the alias “The Accountant”. King recruits an analyst, Marybeth Medina (Cynthia Addai-Robinson) to help him identify and arrest the Accountant before his upcoming retirement.  In the meanwhile, Chris is off on a new assignment where he meets Dana Cummings (Anna Kendrick) a young CPA, who has found an accounting mistake in her company’s books.  CEO, Lamar Blackburn (John Lithgow) and his sister and associate Rita Blackburn (Jean Smart) hire Chris to collaborate Dana’s findings.  Because of what Chris and Dana find, they are targeted for assassination — and so the adventure really gets started.  They are ruthlessly pursued by a hit man (Jon Bernthal).  I consider The Accountant a much see thriller that will keep you guessing right to the twisted end.