Trumbo (2015)

Directed by: Jay Roach

Written by: John McNamara & Bruce Cook (novel)

Starring: Bryan Cranston, Diane Lane, & Helen Mirren








I apologize for not uploading a post sooner.  It's been a crazy two weeks.  I could barely make it to this film today, but going to the movies is my happy place and it definitely reset my motivation for...well life in general I guess.

So, you should be happy to hear that I did NOT fall asleep.  I know, shocking.  That's because this movie was amazing!

I may be biased.  I am pursuing the film industry after all, but who doesn't love a film about film?  Seriously, who?

But let's get down to the details.  What made this film great exactly?  Well everything pretty much.

Cranston's perfromance of Dalton Trumbo was outstanding. Lane's performance of Cleo Trumbo was amazing.  Fanning, Mirren, Goodman, C.K., and all the other actors were marvelous.

Now before this film, I did not necessarily know much about Mr. Trumbo, nor the details of what exactly went on during this blacklisted time.  All I knew was Communism was afoot in Hollywood during the 1950s or so.  So before watching this movie, I was a little aprehensive, with my concern being that you had to know a lot about the time period and political language, which I don't know much about.  But luckily I had no reason to be concerned.  The movie's nature was simple.  Technically it was about the blacklisting and the politics behind it, but the film mostly focused on the personal toll that the Hollywood 10 had to go through, what their families went through and ultimately how they overcame it or didn't.

I barely have anything negative to say about this film.  The negatives were it was a slow start, but after it got going, it got going.  What else?  Um...yeah that's it.  Nothing else.

The camera work was great.  There was a combination of archival footage, reenactment footage, and of course the regular footage, made up the film quite nicely.  Even at the end, when the credits were rolling it was good.  But despite all the technical amazements, the performances and the script are what made this film successful.

So technically you can look up the history to figure out what happens, but don't spoil it for yourself.  Just go see it.  It was worth seeing from my $25 combination of food and ticket.  5 popcorns!!!