Director
Jay Roach
(TRUMBO)

Starring
Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, Margot Robbie and John Lithgow

Now nominated for three Academy Awards, Bombshell takes us into the world of Fox News at the beginning of a cultural shift in the US media and Hollywood. Before Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey, there was a story that rocked the fabric of news media in the United States. When Gretchen Carlson filed a lawsuit against Fox News CEO Roger Ailes, citing years of sexual harassment and humiliation, it marked the beginning of a movement that would see many powerful men brought down by their years of misdeeds.

Bombshell focusses its attention of two real life victims of Ailes (John Lithgow), Carlson (Nicole Kidman) and Megyn Kelly (Charlize Theron), as well a composite character Kayla Pospisil (Margot Robbie) who is used to represent a number of women preyed upon by Ailes. Whilst Carlson was the catalyst of the action taken against Ailes, the role that Kelly played in giving these allegations credence is also explored in this film. Those familiar with the story may compare the film to the recent seven-part mini-series The Loudest Voice, which explores some of the events that Bombshell does, however that takes a broader focus and looks at the whole Fox career of Ailes, rather than honing in on his downfall.

With its frenetic pacing and array of characters within, the events the film portrays are at times difficult to follow. With only a 109-minute running time, there is a lot of information to cram in, but when the story slows down, and the performances of Theron and Robbie (who have both been nominated for Academy Awards for their roles) are given the time they need, the strength of film really breaks through and the emotion conveyed is palpable.

Bombshell is a powerful film with an important message, but its greatest strength is the balance in which the message is conveyed. It would have been easy to fall into the cliché trap of demonizing all men and making all the female characters the heroes. But here is a very focused hit on a toxic environment that was allowed to fester at Fox News, but it also shows a number of women who enabled the behavior and went as far as publicly endorsing the accused predators while tearing down their colleagues who were brave enough to speak out. It’s an interesting look at how both sides of the gender divide can contribute to the abhorrent behavior shown throughout the film.

Thought provoking, anger inducing and thoroughly engaging, Bombshell adds to several great films that have already been released this year, showing that 2020 in shaping up to be the year of great cinema.

4.5 Stars

Moviedoc thanks StudioCanal for the opportunity to review this film.

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