Review of The Fifth Estate (2013) by Fran P — 22 Oct 2013

I wanted so much to be gripped and riled and entertained and educated. Instead I found myself cringing at stumbling, amateurish dialogue and wishing the venerable Cumberbatch had turned this down. He's obviously strong but his Assange teeters on parody.

Daniel Bruhl's performance is ok, but one can't shake the feeling that since his character is the one on whose book the film is based, this is far from a true-to-life piece. Berg is painted as a virtual saint.

Doesn't wash. Like most of the film, and its dialogue, and its dizzying globe-flitting, and its brief glossing over of the Assange take charges - none of it washes.