Day 171 - The Post



Day 171          The Post [2017]
                          
Screenplay                    Liz Hannah & Josh Singer
Director                         Steven Spielberg
Cinematography            Janusz Kamiński
Music                            John Williams
Leads                            Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Sarah Paulson, Bob Odenkirk, Tracy Letts, Bruce Greenwood, Matthew Rhys, Alison Brie, Jesse Plemons, David Cross, Zach Woods
Production                     20th Century Fox, Dreamworks Pictures, Amblin Entertainment, Participant Media, Pascal Pictures, Star Thrower Entertainment, TSG Entertainment, Amblin Partners

IMDb                                 7.2/10
Rotten Tomatoes                 87%

Was there ever a more powerful duo in a film? Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep would make most sane people’s top five best actor lists. Believe it or not it was the first time that these Hollywood stalwarts have appeared alongside each other and under the guidance of the great Steven Spielberg no less. Was the pressure ever really going to get to them? Sometimes big budget, big cast films do not perform as expected. Armageddon and The Tourist spring to mind. However, Hanks and Streep excel in the story of The Washington Post’s rise from a local D.C. news offering to respected national paper. It became such after the publication of the Pentagon Papers, which were an examination of the US-Vietnam war over around 30 years. The reports reflected an entirely negative conclusion for the United States and yet at the time they remained in a gruesome war with North Vietnam. A whistle-blower leaks the documents to both the New York Times and The Post and the film becomes a ‘will-they-won’t-they’ of whether the papers will publish the classified papers and face Nixon’s wrath. The tension and excitement in such a situation reminded me of Spotlight. There is substantial anticipation when the journalists get hold of such large stories and have to deliberate over the consequences of publishing such remarkable news. It’s a magnified version of the feeling one gets when someone tells you a massive secret and you have to try and keep it. Spielberg paces the film like a marathon runner. I never felt like things were moving too slowly or that we were being rushed along. Instead the tension and the feelings in the characters was built and built to a climax, all of which gave us an opportunity to see these two legendary actors show their class. Praise has to be given all around as the supporting cast were strong, direction and writing were fabulous and, although not show-stopping, Kamiński and Williams cooked their courses just right. Meat and drink for such big names, but they still pulled it out the bag.

Acting                              4 / 4
Writing                          3.5 / 4
Cinematography               3 / 4
Music                               3 / 4
HWF rating               3.5 / 4

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