By Charlie Wachtel
Every film has a different code of ethics for its newspaper, reporter, editor, and even its subjects. The most recent newspaper movie, State of Play, reminded us of just how downright dirty editors and reporters on film can be. And being that newspaper films seem to be headed toward extinction, we thought it would be fun the recall the many newspaper films worth the price of admission.
Case Studies: State of Play, All the President’s Men, Absence of Malice, The Paper, Ace in the Hole.
Honorable Mention: Citizen Kane, Shattered Glass, Sweet Smell of Success, Newsies.
STATE OF PLAY (2009)
Can a newspaper be more powerful if it’s about to tank? Director Kevin MacDonald (The Last King of Scotland) seems to think so. Such is the dramatic tension existing in most newspaper movies. The reporter needs a reason to keep their job and make sure the newspaper can survive. So what often happens in these movies is that reporters end up digging for a story until they strike gold. Some have no moral boundaries while others could care less about legal limits. In State of Play, old-fashioned Washington Globe reporter Cal McAffrey (Russell Crowe) is a moral character with a sound sense of journalism ethics but with absolutely no legal limits. McAffrey breaks the Woodward and Bernstein convention of investigative journalism by instead playing detective, journalist, crime-scene-investigator, and player! Talk about a reporter who likes to stay close to his subjects.
Russell Crowe and Ben Affleck in State of Play (2009)
Similar to a 70’s style political thriller, McAffrey and sidekick Della Frye (Rachel McAdams) organically unravel the complex mystery of the murder linked to Rep. Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck), McAffrey’s old college buddy. Their involvement in the story is often dangerous, and enough to get the police to show up at their headquarters after McAffrey withholds evidence. A memorable line is when the police sergeant reminds McAffrey, “It’s not a story, it’s a case!” Like Michael Keaton’s character in The Paper, McAffrey believes that in the newspaper timing is everything. So he employs illegal tactics such as videotaping his subjects and conducting closed-door interrogations in hotel rooms! Fearing that his partner or other bloggers will impulsively “upchuck online” after hearing a rumor, McAffrey represents a dying breed of reporters who believe that writing for a major newspaper carries a greater sense of accountability and accuracy which cannot be realized in the instantaneous, digital realm. Perhaps he is the last best hope for the papers.
ACE IN THE HOLE (1951)
Arguably the king of the newspaper films (that is unless you consider Citizen Kane to fit in this category), Billy Wilder’s ferociously uncompromising picture takes jabs at both the reporter who writes the story as well as the public who loves to gobble it up. Having been fired from various big-city newspapers, Charles “Chuck” Tatum (Kirk Douglas) finds himself needing to land a big rebound for an Albuquerque newspaper in New Mexico. Upon discovering a man named Leo Minosa (Richard Benedict) trapped in a cavern, Tatum seizes the opportunity to blow the story out of proportion into a national headliner while exploiting the rescue effort.
Tatum directs the entire rescue effort in a manner that will take days on end to complete while endangering the life of Minosa. Meanwhile, Tatum acts as a puppeteer, telling Minosa’s wife that she should pretend to be sad even though she’s thinking of leaving her husband. Tatum also bribes the Sheriff with media exposure if he can keep national reporters in the dark and allow Tatum to doctor the story as much as possible.
Kirk Douglas in "Ace in the Hole" (1951)
To the other big-city papers, Tatum once again appears as a moneymaking commodity to have on staff after he receives national attention as a celebrity. But to the editor of the Albuquerque newspaper who boasts a sign in the office which reads “Tell the Truth,” Tatum represents a cancer to pure and ethical reporting.
Unlike other newspaper films, the reporter cares an awful lot more about business and sales than the editor for Albuquerque’s paper. In Tatum’s utopian mind, smiling faces and happy endings are important requirements for good storytelling. Though he claims he is a “human interest” writer, he hardly has any human interest for his subject whose life is on the line. And yet it’s difficult to crucify Tatum particularly since Wilder’s commentary on the public’s interest in news is both reflexive and somewhat accusatory. The working title for the film, “The Big Carnival,” suggests Wilder wanted to rip on the large crowds that flocked to Albuquerque by making them the focal point of the story’s focus instead of Tatum. To Wilder, the bigger story for the papers is the mere fact that a nation-wide, circus-like event is staged at the scene where a desperate man is fighting for his life.
ABSENCE OF MALICE (1981)
This film focuses on the importance of reporters getting their facts straight, even when their sources seem reliable. In this case, Megan Carter (Sally Field) must cope with a whirlwind of repercussions set in motion by her choice to publish an unconfirmed report found on a desk linking Michael Gallagher (Paul Newman), son of a deceased Mafia boss to the disappearance of a union member. When Carter gets romantically involved with Gallagher, the line of trust erodes as Gallagher questions her loyalty as a friend over her passion for being a reporter. Although she may not come off as such, Carter represents the most selfish and ruthless of news reporters since she allows herself to become quite close with her subjects before backstabbing them for the sake of story. In one instance when Carter is confirming the whereabouts of Gallagher and Gallagher’s friend, Teresa Perrone (Melinda Dillon) at the time the union man disappeared, Teresa is lured into Carter’s trap of admitting Gallagher was with her during her scheduled abortion that very day. A devout Catholic, Teresa is ardently opposed to letting the community know about this even though the news can help absolve Gallagher. But in favor her story at the expense of Teresa, Carter nevertheless publishes the article only to discover the next day that Teresa has slit her wrists in suicide.
Paul Newman and Sally Field in "Absence of Malice" (1981)
This film explores what happens when desirable news stories are doctored by self-interested people who are either naïve about the power of the newspaper or who deliberately use the newspaper as a tool for political power. Less business-oriented than some other films mentioned, Carter’s editor serves as a moral compass instead of a numbers chart. Absence of Malice underscores the outrageous reality of non-existent stories being manufactured by news reporters for simply the sake of a good story. It fully articulates the consequences of such endeavors, on both the side of the subject and source of the story.
The final scene of the film dazzles with irony as Asst. U.S. Attorney James A. Wells (Wilford Brimley) interrogates all responsible parties for the false and illegal reporting. Gallagher, the initial suspect, ends up having the last laugh.
ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN (1976):
Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford in "All the President's Men" (1976)
Two words. Fact-check. Alan J. Pakula’s newsroom in Washington doesn’t mess around with false stories since DC’s power players are always reading the morning edition. Woodward (Robert Redford) and Bernstein (Dustin Hoffman) may not like you, but they’re sure as hell gonna make sure that they’re right before printing a story. These are guys with class and ethics who believe in the investigation and are willing to put themselves on the line even if it means putting their jobs on the line. It isn’t until the end of the film when they print the story they’ve been waiting to print from the get-go, banging away on the typewriter. But it took a couple hours of interrogations, fact-checking, and careful brainstorming in order to get there.
THE PAPER (1994)
Having a field day with the enthusiasm of a solid cast, Ron Howard brings the energy and excitement of the newsroom to the big screen with power and
purpose. The Paper reminds us why we favor one paper over another and gives us some insight into the importance of delivering the right story at the right time. As the clock winds down before the printing presses begin rolling, Henry Hackett (Michael Keaton) utilizes every tool and every person within proximity to get what he wants to prove his story before deadline. For Hackett, it’s less about the story itself and more about the timing of the story. He views reporting in such a way that he feels he is a client to the public. If his paper can print a story accurately and stay ahead of the curve in reporting against other papers, even if it’s just by a difference of one day, Hackett proclaims victory.
To the average viewer, the difference in getting a story right should not make too much of a difference in the time frame of just 24-hours. But Keaton brings such a richness and sense of purpose to his character that makes him easy to root for. Once we learn that he has turned down an offer from another paper that would be more money, Hackett has no other motive for wanting to publish the story other than to save the two innocents.
Charlie Wachtel is a Senior Writer for The Film Crusade and Founder of www.filmcrusade.com.
