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    Trumbo

    Reviewed by
    adamwatchesmovies@

    “Trumbo” is without a doubt one of the best movies of the year. I’d be as bold as to say it’s the best movie, but I have a showing of “Spotlight” coming up in about an hour so I’ll reserve my judgment lest I sound hyperbolic. The point is that “Trumbo” is exactly what I look for when I know I’m about to see is a drama. Great performances, a script that dazzles with snappy dialogue, a roller coaster of a story that takes you through a wide range of emotions, heroes you fall in love with, villains you love to hate, messages that echo through the ages and a subject that sucks you in.

    Based on a true story, Bryan Cranston plays Dalton Trumbo, a successful screenwriter who is blacklisted (along with other artists) because of his allegiances to the Communist party. At a loss after the witch-hunt, he and his “cohorts” decide fight the system the only way they know how: by writing movie scripts.

    “Trumbo” was tailor-made for me. I love movies so hearing about how they’re made is a subject I’m very interested in and it’s about an underdog challenging an immoral authority. Don’t care about movies, but enough to go see one in the theatre? Good, because this movie will have you just as emotionally invested. What we have here is a picture that fills you with a fury. I’m talking about an intense, burning desire to rise up and do something; that bloodlust to see a wrong righted that can only be generated by witnessing a tremendous injustice. I could talk about how this film brings to the forefront a good message, about how the freedom of expression is a cause worth rallying around, but I won’t. It’s a no-brainer that everyone should have the right to say what he or she want (just as they have the right to be wrong and must be held accountable for their mistakes) and I don’t want to give the impression that I am fond of “Trumbo” because it tells a nice story. Forget that. This story is a blast because it’s about a man, a guy that is being bullied and decides he’s not going to take it anymore. Not when he knows that his words have the power to conjure up a stick big enough to smite all of his enemies.

    This is a dazzler of a screenplay, with memorable lines and witty remarks coming at you in a flurry so constant you won’t be able to grasp them all. You might not think of the written word as something that can savored, but that’s only because you haven’t been exposed to it like you will be here, delivered by this terrific cast. This is an inspiring movie. Cranston as Trumbo is a man with faults whose spirit threatens to break at several times. He and his family and friends go through tremendous ordeals and they’re being hated for trivial reasons. Seeing people in the face of such adversity inspires you. Helen Mirren plays the villain of the film, Hedda Hopper. She’s some kind of re-animated cadaver with vile mush for brains that’s somehow managed to convince everyone around her that she’s still a living, breathing woman whose opinions are worth anything. You want her to get her just deserts so bad your eyes will be glued to the screen and every second of defiance from our hero is a treat.

    If there’s one thing I love about historical movies is seeing people who were awful in real-life get their names broadcast years after their deaths so the world can recognize them for the belly-dragging lizard/human hybrids that they were. Despite the constant struggles that our hero must face and the repeated episodes of injustice, you always feel somewhat joyful. The idea that Trumbo gets a movie to himself where he is shown as the hero and the ones who thought they could destroy his career fills you with jubilation.

    As a bonus the film is educational, and it couldn’t be timelier. The idea of the “Red Menace” might be dead but look at the news and tell me we’re not threatened with a similar scenario right now worldwide. I actually wish the film could have trimmed down on some of the language (Although some of the bits where a few colorful words are thrown around by John Goodman are delightful) because this is the kind of movie that I would love to show to younger people, or in classrooms. It doesn’t feel like a lesson at all, making it easily digestible (and worth re-watching) plus it contains some of the finest performances you will find this year.

    Sitting in the theatre and watching “Trumbo” is like getting intense voltage pumped through your body. It riles you up with passion and then brings you along for a ride where you get the inside scoop on everything that happened. Then, it brings in the sadness for maximum impact. It’s powerful stuff. When this Jay Roach film comes out on home video you’re going to want to grab it so you can turn on the subtitles and catch every delicious morsel of dialogue, but don’t wait till then, see this one now. When you do, stick around for the credits because there’s archival footage of the real man about halfway through and it’s great stuff. I loved this movie. Can’t praise its screenplay, the way it handles the story, the performances or the direction enough. (Theatrical version on the big screen, December 9, 2015)

    10
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    adamwatchesmovies@  10.12.2015 age: 26-35 2,867 reviews

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