News of the World
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
We are playing catch up by reviewing films that are a part of the current awards season.
I’m not the biggest fan of Paul Greengrass, but I don’t find him particularly harmful, either. In ways, he can tell a great story. The key words: “in ways”. For instance, I think Captain Phillips starts and ends tremendously, but its midsection is quite a bit of a slog for me (regardless of what is happening on screen; it’s still just so glacially shown). I do think he has interesting stories to tell as well. Case in point: News of the World isn’t really a bad film or even a flat-out decent film, but I do think it could have been done a little more differently. Funnily enough, I almost find News of the World almost like a reverse Captain Phillips: it starts and ends rather passively, but its middle is so extreme and in-your-face. However, I do think News of the World is a more complete film, even though Captain Phillips is a stronger film (due to its separate parts) overall.
The plot is quite typical for a Western film that could be made in 2020. A veteran finds a child — who was previously living with a Kiowa tribe — and tries to take her back to her blood family. This girl can’t speak English, and part of the film is dedicated towards this lack of communication being the bonding experience between an elder and a youth. The things that are learned on either end are pretty selectively chosen, in a bit of a clever way; many of the words that are taught come up later. In learning comes trust, and the relationship then turns from guardian to a young life endangered by a terrible world. Strategically enough, the veteran is a teller of news (hence the title of the film), so his knowledge of America’s evils is abundant. It’s fitting that he is the guy to try and take care of an isolated child.
The strong connection between the old and new generation is the driving point for News of the World.
News of the World feels mostly profound, but it enjoys its moments of action or tension as well (although they don’t overly populate the film). I will give Greengrass credit that there are a lot of achieved emotions here (as intended). However, I still find this film (as well as many others of his) to be a one-and-done experience. I’ve seen News of the World now. Do I need to see it again? Not really, but I did like what I saw enough to be able to recommend it to western fans and anyone who chases every single Tom Hanks film under the sun. Otherwise, it’s a standard western, and what you’d expect from Paul Greengrass. You can guess how it will go, and how it will feel. It’s still well made, with its use of natural lighting, throwback score, and convincing recreations of a Civil War America. It just feels archetypical, like this is a western that will blend in with almost any other western ever made. It’s a must for obsessives of the genre, but that’s kind of it. It’s harmless to try, but I can’t find any reasons to claim that News of the World is an absolute must to watch. After this awards season is done, I’m not sure how often it will be brought up ever again.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.