Good Night, and Good Luck (2005)
What do we believe?
Sometimes truth is black and white.
Do not walk in fear.
A movie with the gravity of Good Night, and Good Luck can be crushing.
The story examines the on-air and behind the camera battle between newsman Edward R. Murrow and Wisconsin Senator Joseph McCarthy during 1953 and 54.
For younger Movie Cats and Kittens, the 1950s were host to a rabid anti-Communist movement in America, marked by the blacklisting and firing of people accused - often without evidence - of disloyalty to the United States. “Tail Gunner Joe” McCarthy became the face and voice of much of this, leading explosive hearings that destroyed lives and sparked fear and hatred through the nation.
Good Night swings the spotlight to a series of investigative reports by Murrow and CBS news’ See It Now program that challenged the junior senator from Wisconsin (a title Murrow turns into an acid dig) when McCarthy was at his strongest and that, arguably, encouraged the nation to reject his fearmongering and divisive tactics.
The cast includes some of the brightest stars of the early 2000s, at a time when many were at the top of their game: George Clooney (The Monuments Men) as producer Fred Friendly, Robert Downey Jr. as editor Joseph Wershba, Jeff Daniels (The Newsroom), Patricia Clarkson (Sharp Objects), and David Strathairn (Lincoln) as Murrow.
So, gravity…
Movies like Good Night can become so heavy that they bury the moviegoer. Thanks to the power of a locomotive strong cast and the brevity of the film - around 90 minutes - they are able to avoid this and the film remains crisp and engaging throughout. They also make great use of contemporary footage, weaving in appearances from figures as varied as Dwight Eisenhower, Liberace, and of course McCarthy.
This is a very, very good film. But not perfect.
Its one flaw is, perhaps unavoidably, tied to the brevity that keeps it clipping along: there is very little time for the audience to get to know the characters and we are often left with fuzzy stamp sized pictures that leave us unsure about who we are seeing and why we should care about them.
That’s how we See it Now. How about you?
You can catch Good Night, and Good Luck HERE.
Four out of Five Legends of Journalism.
🎥🎥🎥🎥
Bonus!
The film includes a portion of Murrow’s “No Fear” commentary from his show on McCarthy. It’s words are worth sharing in full.
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