Bombshell is a 2019 movie starring Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, John Lithgow, and Margot Robbie in the main roles, and Kate McKinnon, Connie Britton, Malcolm McDowell, and Allison Janney in smaller roles. The movie is largely, and mostly, about the chain of events that took down Roger Ailes (played wonderfully by John Lithgow), centered around the lawsuit filed by Gretchen Carlson (played by Nicole Kidman). The main character of the movie, however, is clearly Megyn Kelly (played by Charlize Theron, who, like Lithgow, was in a ton of prosthetics and did really look and sound like Megyn Kelly). It is focused around her life during and after the feud with t***p, and her trying to decide whether to come forward with her own allegations against Ailes.
The plot is based on true, very newsworthy events, but conversations were very much fictionalized (which the movie says is the case at the beginning, so it was not trying to fool anyone). It was not trying at all to be a documentary-like depiction of what went on. It also touched on the allegations against Bill O'Reilly but did not make that a focus of the movie. Where I do think the movie is open to criticism is that it made it look like nearly all the males at Fox were harassing the female employees and that they were all lusting after Kelly. And, that all the women who did not join the lawsuit were somehow covering up what was going on. Plus, the movie definitely took a lot of potshots at Fox News and to some extent, its viewers. Now, I am in no way, shape, or form, a fan of or agree politically with, the majority of the Fox News personalities or their viewers, but I do not think the shots were needed to tell the story the movie was telling. The story could easily have stood alone as it was, keeping the political barbs out of it. I am sure anyone watching the movie could tell by the makeup of the cast that the vast majority of those working on the movie are no fans of Fox News, but this was not the kind of story that needed to make that explicit. With those provisos aside, I do think that the other parts of the story were well written and acted, and all the leads, including Margot Robbie, who played a fictional character that was created from the accounts of a combination of women who worked at Fox, played their parts well.
For those who get the Blu-ray disc, there is a ton of behind-the-scenes and bonus material. There are about an hour and a half worth of featurettes that can be played individually, or all at one time. Then, the theatrical trailer (but not the better teaser trailer) is included as well. A lot there if you are one of those who like going through the bonus material.
Overall, I think it is a good movie, that tells a very necessary story in this day and age, but is not without its flaws. Unfortunately, who likes or dislikes the movie may likely break down to their political leanings. That said, I do think it is worth checking out.
The plot is based on true, very newsworthy events, but conversations were very much fictionalized (which the movie says is the case at the beginning, so it was not trying to fool anyone). It was not trying at all to be a documentary-like depiction of what went on. It also touched on the allegations against Bill O'Reilly but did not make that a focus of the movie. Where I do think the movie is open to criticism is that it made it look like nearly all the males at Fox were harassing the female employees and that they were all lusting after Kelly. And, that all the women who did not join the lawsuit were somehow covering up what was going on. Plus, the movie definitely took a lot of potshots at Fox News and to some extent, its viewers. Now, I am in no way, shape, or form, a fan of or agree politically with, the majority of the Fox News personalities or their viewers, but I do not think the shots were needed to tell the story the movie was telling. The story could easily have stood alone as it was, keeping the political barbs out of it. I am sure anyone watching the movie could tell by the makeup of the cast that the vast majority of those working on the movie are no fans of Fox News, but this was not the kind of story that needed to make that explicit. With those provisos aside, I do think that the other parts of the story were well written and acted, and all the leads, including Margot Robbie, who played a fictional character that was created from the accounts of a combination of women who worked at Fox, played their parts well.
For those who get the Blu-ray disc, there is a ton of behind-the-scenes and bonus material. There are about an hour and a half worth of featurettes that can be played individually, or all at one time. Then, the theatrical trailer (but not the better teaser trailer) is included as well. A lot there if you are one of those who like going through the bonus material.
Overall, I think it is a good movie, that tells a very necessary story in this day and age, but is not without its flaws. Unfortunately, who likes or dislikes the movie may likely break down to their political leanings. That said, I do think it is worth checking out.
