Great movie, a little long though...

Rating: 8/10 (28 November 2016)

One of the most important parts of incorporating a book into a motion picture is holding a viewer's interest whilst providing enough detail to stay true to the book. "Quiz Show" does a very good job of doing so through smart casting, cinematographic techniques, and clever implementation of story writing techniques. While the slow pace and "filler" scenes stand as the marks against it, this classic movie is still worth a watch, especially if you are willing to appreciate the way the story is delivered.
Beginning with the cast, Quiz Show stars John Turturro as Herbie Stempel and Ralph Fiennes as Charles Van Doren. I can say, without a doubt, Turturro's acting really shines when he plays inquisitive characters that are looking for some sort of truth. His role as agent Simmons in Transformers was his greatest role. Herbie Stempel's motivation to expose Charles in the movie even though his words hold little value is similar to agent Simmons, who was trying to prove the Decepticons were a threat to the Earth despite him being seen as nothing but a misguided investigator. Ralph Fiennes starred as Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows as well as Amon Goeth in Schindler's List. Fiennes is known for charismatic characters that are malicious on the inside, and Charles Van Doren was definitely within his stronger characters. The way Van Doren hid his thirst for money through getting the public on his side and delivering a suspiciously well-worded speech in court when accused of taking dives for money shows that Fiennes was a great choice for portraying someone who looks clean but is internally plague by evil motivations.
In terms of story writing, I believe this is where Quiz Show excels. The recreation of 1950's America through the obsession over class, materialism, and recognition really sets the stage for the quiz show era. One example is how Charles is driven to take dives for money even this practice is unethical. His thirst for money and fame corrupted him and made him rig the shows, showing how ethics stood below money and fame in importance. Social class also becomes a theme when Herbert's account of Charles actions in court was dismissed because he was a Brooklyn local and Jewish. The judge praised Charles' shady story because he was a Harvard professor while questioning Herbie's mental state simply because of who he was even though evidence clearly pointed to Charles being guilty. This shows how social class and reputation outweighed hard evidence back in the 50's as social acceptance basically governed the credibility of your word. The recurring themes of materialism, recognition, and social class paint a very clear picture of the situation the characters face, making the story all the more intriguing as you are introduced what life brings in this very special setting of the 1950's.
When looking at the cinematography, I do believe that good use of angles and lighting often ignored as we are naturally drawn to things that are enhanced in such ways. Quiz Show's use of camera techniques and lighting is what really helps a viewer feel the emotion projected by a scene or situation. For example, the use of lighting and camera angles helped convey different feelings of tension when Charles was going to court, about to confess that Twenty One was rigged. The camera angled upwards at the judgmental jury as Charles delivers his confession is used to insert the viewer into his point of view. Having the impression that people are literally looking down upon you makes most people feel a sense of guilt and anticipation of judgment, which projects Charles' air of guilt and futility onto the viewer. The court's skylight was also pointed directly onto Charles as he delivered his confession. This method of lighting is used to divert focus to the subject of a situation, which creates a sense of tension as most people do not feel comfortable being in a spotlight; forced to speak knowing they will embarrass themselves. That lighting effect can really project tension and the viewer can easily empathize with Charles as most people have felt the feeling of being "in the spotlight" and forced to say something they do not wish to.
The one let-down in the story writing is the use of scenes that did not serve any purpose in further developing the story. In short, there were some scenes that were just there to fill time. For example, there is a scene where Herbert just explains to his wife how he plans to expose Twenty-One after other scenes where he also explains that he wishes to expose Twenty-One. This example is one of a few where writer Paul Attanassio though it would make sense to continue hammering in already-established facts and events, when they are really just bloating the movie with extra scenes to compensate for a book that moves faster than a movie will allow. This movie did not have to be 2 hours long. I find this to be a recurring problem with lots of movies, as introducing "bloat" scenes seems to be a recurring practice in Hollywood films to write around a story too short to be deemed a motion picture on its own.
Overall, Quiz Show is definitely worth a watch. There is such a great use of themes in the story's writing that is really aids your understanding of what situations the characters are put through. Cinematography and camera work are well-integrated and project feelings and emotions in very effective ways. The cast is also very interesting and knowing the actors really gives you a greater appreciation for the way it is directed. However, there are a few scenes that serve nothing to character or plot development and were evidently used to fill time. Overall, this movie definitely deserves the 8 stars I give it. It presents the dark reality of quiz shows in the 50's but in many intriguing ways.