TRUMBO

Movies about writers are pretty difficult to pull off, cause there ain't much about typing that's dramatic. And I read at least one review that said TRUMBO didn't have any character arc for the lead to make the film dramatic since he starts and ends as the same man.

But, for my taste, TRUMBO does make writing vital and dramatic and full of movement and even suspense that makes for a terrific ride. Bryan Cranston is excellent in the lead role as is Diane Lane as his wife and Helen Mirren as Hedda Hopper the original Hollywood gossip columnist. A big surprise for me was Louis C.K. in a role he owns and makes worth watching, as does John Goodman as always.

The story is known, and it certainly was to me, but it still moved me to tears of gratitude and relief at the end that the terrible period of the McCarthy with hunts and Hollywood blacklists and phony super patriotism that discredits as traitorous any point of view that questioned, at least in those times, everyone's level of anti-communist fervor.

Then I remembered that we're in another period of some of us being labeled unpatriotic or traitorous if we believe in tougher gun laws or welcoming refugees from the horrible Syrian conflict etc. I think everyone should see this film (and yes, it did take me a few scenes to accept contemporary actors playing Hollywood's golden age icons, especially since some of the footage is actual historic news film of some of those icons, but eventually I surrendered to the conceit and even began to dig it).