Review of Trumbo (2007) by Jenna I — 11 Sep 2016

I genuinely really liked this! A supremely interesting time in American history and some really wonderful acting by Cranston here. I'm not sure why the reviews of this movie are calling it cliche or 'gaudy.' Perhaps they're mistaking dry humor for sincerity? I mean the movie is really about how, behind closed doors, capitalism will always trump all other 'morals' in the United States. For all of the red-white-and-blue fanfare we love to show on the outside, and people we'll throw in jail over not expressing themselves in the 'correct' way, when it comes down to it the real God we pray to is the almighty dollar. This country simply doesn't care if you're a so-called pinko commie or a conservative christian fascist, if you're an enterprising hard worker who can make other people money then that's really all that matters. It's that duplicity that's so harrowing and absurd, you've got to laugh or else you'll cry.

I thought Roach did a great job of showing the dimension of the various characters- as Trumbo himself says there are no heroes or villains, just victims. Cranston's Trumbo indeed comes off as a victim, unfairly maligned and forced into a corner where he no longer has the capacity to see anything but temporary allies or enemies, alienating his family and ultimately himself. He's also supremely charming. You get the sense Dalton Trumbo just -was- the kind of guy that, as Louis CK's clunky character keeps sighing about, speaks as if everything he was saying should be chiseled in stone. I loved the emphasis on his wife and family, their struggles really added to the emotional depth of the film.

All in all, I found the film to be fast paced and interesting throughout, no clue how people found this to be boring.