A thought on the movie “State of play”As awkward as this may sound, one can’t help but faintly hearing Bonnie Tyler’s “Holding out for a hero” playing in the back of one’s mind after watching State of play.
In short, without giving the story away, daily paper investigative reporter Cal McAfferty (Russell Crow) starts working on a story that has much more to it than the surface reveals. It becomes even more intriguing when there are personal interests at stake and decisions become vital in his search for truth, and all of this comes at a cost. (Good cast, includes Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams)
In short, without giving the story away, daily paper investigative reporter Cal McAfferty (Russell Crow) starts working on a story that has much more to it than the surface reveals. It becomes even more intriguing when there are personal interests at stake and decisions become vital in his search for truth, and all of this comes at a cost. (Good cast, includes Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams)
Like most Hollywood movies it has its fair share of unrealistic elements, one being a cop selling info in return for a cup of coffee early on in the story. But despite its flaws I like it for the important journalistic values it displays: One of the main issues I came to think about after watching it was the question of how I would act if my story contains a personal relationship, one I had not really though of before. It also highlights the very important idea of the search for truth, an element I personally believe to be at the very heart of journalism – independent of what type of journalism you are doing…be it features, science, politics... Also important is that it showed that journalist can have an opinion and still act “objectively” by bringing froth the truth.
State of Play is slightly idealistic at heart (a little like myself I guess) but is a movie I would recommend for any aspiring journalist. Some might perhaps critique it as a very stereotypical and perhaps even mainstream view on journalists and journalism, but this didn’t really bother me in the movie.
If nothing else the movie captures what I always admired in a journalist, and would aspire to be myself: were journalists are seen as truth seekers and watchdogs for the public; people who seek the truth in the interest of their readers. Rather this than the over saturated world of reproducing news without any depth, and with too much focus on sensation as to sell news.
To conclude I leave you with a quote from the movie that I really liked…one that seems to leave a little light at the end of the tunnel for those who sometimes feel overwhelmed with spicy tabloid and sensational rubbish:
"You know, in the middle of all this gossip and speculation that permeates people's lives I still think they [readers] know the difference between real news and bullshit and they are glad when someone cares enough to get things on the record and print the truth." - Cal McAfferty, State of Play
*AllStars*
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