More thrilling than most thriller movies!

Rating: 8/10 (28 February 2018)

It's a story of unglamorous leg-work rather than thundering revelation. The drama here comes from the detail, and the reporters' slow realisation that their investigation could change the world far beyond Boston's city limits. The Church's power is revealed as smoke, mirrors and an unwarranted sense of deference, with journalism at its best proving its worth.
Director Thomas McCarthy's great strength is in his refusal to pander to audiences, or to default to easy answers; the correct reaction to the team's work is horror rather than jubilation. And while admirable, the reporters take some blame upon themselves. This crisis, after all, developed under their noses and it took an outsider to force them to examine it. Similarly, the cast (Mark Ruffalo was freakin' good!) modestly play down their characters' achievements and reputations. There is no Oscar-bait grandstanding (well, maybe one moment) and they all look quietly dowdy without indulging in any unnecessary uglification. These journalist greats could happily have rubbed shoulders with Woodward and Bernstein in All The President's Men, and they bring down an even bigger institution.
Talky and intelligent, this lacks the glib edge of Aaron Sorkin or the poppy zip of Tarantino. Given the subject matter, too much lightness would be inappropriate. Instead, its tone is led by its characters, moving from scepticism to revelation and the uncomfortable sense that we should all feel guilty for ignoring the secrets too hard to acknowledge.