Snowden

Rating: 10/10 (17 September 2016)

Over all the films I have seen by writer/director Oliver Stone over the years, I have always found him to be his absolute best when he is tackling a story, or a film centered on either politics, government and the conspiracies that sometimes go with it and various other headline grabbing issues involved with those who are currently, or were at one time in political office. I wish Stone would stick to making more of those type of films such as JFK, or even W., which I for one thought was vastly misunderstood and underrated by the critics. I am so glad that as a filmmaker he has chosen again to shed light on what is bound to be a controversial film and figure in it's lead subject, Edward Snowden. Now if you have seen any of Stone's films related to politics, or anything slightly controversial, or even if you have just listened to him on a television interview, it is no secret that he tends to be more liberal at heart and is more, or less against capitalism, or what would be seen as more conservative type ideologies, or beliefs. Surprisingly though, I thought he would paint an absolutely scathing portrait of George W. Bush in his 2008 film W., but much to my surprise and delight I found the film to be almost more sympathetic towards Bush and more, or less saying that he missed the ball (as demonstrated in some cleverly used metaphorical images in the film) as a president, but maybe his intentions were not all bad and he isn't the demon that the liberal media made him out to be. Certainly food for thought and something different than Stone's more typical left wing bias. Here we have the film, Snowden and again right from the beginning of the film we see that he is clearly on the side of Snowden, and truly believes that what he did was a truly patriotic and heroic act and that Snowden was truly acting on behalf of Americans and their freedom and ultimately their privacy and well being and with his film he is very clearly saying that Snowden is a hero even if not all persons think so. The film even if it does have this particular bias, or theme in mind while portraying him and the events that led him to leaking all this classified information against the government, even so the film is tremendously fascinating and truly one of those films that truly engages the viewer in thoughts and much deep thinking not only during the film, but afterwards as well. We as an audience are led through the events that cover almost a ten plus year history of the events that led up to Snowden making this decision and why he chose to do what he did. The film also shows that what Snowden did was certainly not an easy choice and it did bring him many tough decisions and problems that affected his relationships as well as his own health. The whole gamut of why he did what he did and the reasons he had for doing it and what Stone and company consider to be a totally and completely selfless act and that is part of why what he did was in their minds so courageous and why he should be labelled a hero. Watching this fascinating and engrossing account certainly gave me a lot to ponder and think about while watching the film and I do not know if it was just the overall power and effect of the film that got to me, or how absolutely convincing it was in it's overall argument in Snowden's favour, but I have to be honest and say that they make a very valid and true point with this film and this is truly something to be considered and evaluated seriously and maybe what the government was doing was wrong and in this case, perhaps Snowden was truly justified in doing what he did and maybe the label of "hero" is actually well deserved. The film constructs this case as if it were a prize winning PhD thesis and it truly wins marks for effort and persuasive storytelling while also being convincing and giving every side a fair chance. The screenplay truly accomplishes a lot and is so well constructed and put together that it is one of Stone's best not just lately, but of his whole body of work. The performance here by Joseph Gordon Levitt as Snowden, was one that I found to be a truly interesting performance and character and not just with the different tone of voice that Levitt used, but by humanizing and really allowing us to empathize and support what Snowden was doing. The fact that what he did also cost him a lot adds to this and Levitt's performance truly shows an honourable man with many inner demons and struggles who goes to a lot to achieve what he thinks is right. This is one of the most powerful films of the year and also the most interesting and I encourage everyone who is interested in this case, whether you be for, or against Snowden to give it a shot and I think you will be pleasantly surprised. One of the year's best.