'The Report' is the political thriller of the year
filmsDespite what the critics say, they are not homework: it is exciting (and a lot of it is Adam Driver's fault)
By Taylor Antrim
When it comes to talking about political wrongdoing, the Trump era has recalibrated all standards. And it is that in this world plagued by great crimes and scams, the misdeeds of yesteryear can seem even picturesque.
That's why we need The Report, a gripping political thriller that opened in a limited number of theaters on November 15 but is scheduled to stream on Amazon Prime beginning November 29. The tape written and directed by Scott Z. Burns recovers a dark and recent past in the history of the United States: the use within the CIA of the so-called "enhanced interrogation techniques" with those detained as a result of 9/11. Starring a fascinating Adam Driver – who, if it weren't for his other, even more fascinating work in Marriage Story, would surely drop the 2020 Oscar – The Report brings us the true story of congressional investigator Dan Jones, who spent five years collecting evidence that the CIA participated in cases of torture and then tried to justify them by appealing to their value as a tool for extracting information (such as the one that would lead, among other things, to ending the life of Osama Bin Laden).
Drowning, stress positions, sleep deprivation, exposure to extreme cold or the use of dogs were some of the techniques introduced by the CIA during the George W. Bush administration, although The Report reminds us that President Obama nor did he go out of his way to uncover how widespread their use had been and how little they actually reported. Jones had to fight fiercely just to publish the "executive summary" of his 5,000-page report, a document that had it not been for the iron will of his boss, Senator Dianne Feinstein (played here with the exquisiteness that Annette Bening is used to ), perhaps it would never have seen the light.
The anticipated anticipation The Report has generated, since it first screened at Sundance in January, has been met with half-hearted praise. Critics paint it as homework: two hours of non-stop talking, document collecting, and heated political debate (meaning, if you liked Spotlight, you'll love The Report). And it is true that Driver spends most of the film confined to a basement with no windows and that you have to put up with numerous scenes of him passing files on the computer screen. But it's never a dull movie. It's tense and disturbing, a throwback to the paranoid political thrillers of the '70s (the scenes of his dark encounters with sources and journalists are worthy heirs to All the President's Men).
As the film picks up pace, it's impossible not to be captivated by Burns' discipline and control. There is no spiel that is unnecessarily long and its scenes of torture in total darkness are heartbreaking without being gratuitous (appetizing alternative to the explicit and abundant torture of Blackest Night, also loaded with subliminal propaganda from the CIA to 'sneak' it into the action movie fans. The villains are very villainous (the two Air Force psychologists, who devised the techniques without any basis in actual interrogations, are particularly sickening; and don't miss Jon Hamm as President Obama's chief of staff, Denis McDonough, rounding out the bureaucratic triangle).
I agree that this film, located on the side of facts and evidence, will not be liked much beyond the regulars of debates, news and gatherings. Not surprising in these times when President Trump has vowed to reinstate drowning and other “much worse” techniques, cheered by his base; or when a poll at the recently opened International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C., has found that the majority of its visitors would approve of the use of torture to stop terrorist attacks.
In this way, The Report is not so much a history lesson as an urgent reminder that the United States has stopped claiming moral leadership. I was both exhausted and shocked by the film, especially by Driver's work. It's the most realistic embodiment of moral conscience I've seen in a long time. He scrupulously controls his outrage... until he can't take it anymore. And when you see him unleash it, yelling at all those vested interest bureaucrats and intelligence officers, his fury will bring you to your feet.
This article originally appeared on Vogue.com
