Steven Spielberg
The Post

LA RECENSIONE

There's nothing to say, Spielberg is a sure bet. But in this case, I think it's more necessary than ever to distinguish between a great true story and a film adaptation that cannot be called great. Solid, clear, sharp, well-paced, but not great. A version of Spielberg's cinema that is too unambitious, too didactic, almost a lesson in freedom directed at the rest of the world: "Look how free we are in America!"

Which is fair enough, and comparing it to the Italian situation, even today, makes you want to cry. It's precisely the overall approach of the film that seems too tranchant to me, focused on some massive conflicts where the distinction between good and evil is always clear. For instance, the character of Nixon, turned into a pure villain, exemplifies the film's reluctance to explore nuances.

Yet, the screenplay involves Josh Singer, co-author of Spotlight. That giant of cinema about journalism certainly doesn't make it easy for the films that have come after. Too beautiful, too rich in nuances, details, and finesse to be even equaled.

Spielberg does the homework, plays it safe with the actors, giving the impression of an overall déjà vu. Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, great, perfect, but the feeling is exactly that of a cinema that plays and sings to itself, of political cinema so to speak, that talks about hot topics when they're now far away and interest no one anymore (yes, I'm thinking of the latest Clint, who does the opposite).

I believe that a film of this type lacks real incisiveness, it is pure hagiography of those "great journalists who had the courage to...". Lacking a real opposing viewpoint, representing the government as evil, the issue is posed on a level not much different from adventure, superhero cinema. There are the champions of good and the dark governmental forces.

The problematic knots, such as the risk of financial repercussions and going against old friends, are reiterated several times, almost to the point of redundancy. They are certainly the most interesting aspect of the work, but the narrative is somewhat didactic and repetitive. The problematic aspects soon give way to the triumphant crescendo of the Washington Post, complete with celebratory music from the old John Williams.

And yet, in the end, something remains, a great tribute to journalism, even to its practical mechanisms from the past, now outdated, to its constant balancing act between the will to publish the most scorching news and the fear that for this you'll be roasted. In the choices of an insecure publisher, the essence of doing journalism is concentrated, of being inconvenient even when it means putting a spoke in your friends' wheels. A great story indeed, for a film unfortunately not equally great.

6.5/10