BOMBSHELL: Old News Isn’t As Compelling

Before the #MeToo movement blew through Hollywood like wildfire, it was almost impossible to imagine taking down a powerful, well-connected mogul with accusations of sexual harassment and abuse. While the long-term success of that shakeup is still being sorted out, there is a definitive precursor to applaud, a beacon that proved what was possible even among the most elite in society.

That was the ejection of Roger Ailes from Fox News, which he had built into the conservative media powerhouse it is today. That job came after decades working as media consultants for top Republican campaigns, including the presidential runs of Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush. Basically, he was as connected and wealthy as you could get, and yet an avalanche of accusations by former and current female employees caused him to be fired in disgrace.

Bombshell brings that story to the big screen, positioning Gretchen Carlson, Megyn Kelly, and other women from Fox News not as the heroes many of us wanted, but as the heroes we got.

An Ill-Advised Approach

This dissection of how the unlikely event occurred comes from a writer of The Big Short, and director Jay Roach makes no bones about imitating that film’s quippy, fourth wall breaking, pseudo-documentary style. At first glance that might seem like a brilliant choice. After all, telling the extent of Ailes’ behavior would be punishing to do straight, but it turns out that style of humor doesn’t really match this story.

What makes it feel off here is this: what Ailes did was personal. It involved looking a human in the eye and treating them inhumanely. The brokers and various bank men of The Big Short were moving around numbers, so having a film that distanced us from events by constantly reminding us that we’re watching a film matched the distance the characters felt to those they were harming. To create distance between us and the women of Bombshell is a disservice, a cop out that minimizes what they went through, giving a strange sensation that this material isn’t being handled with the gravity it deserves.

That’s not to say that Bombshell isn’t and shouldn’t be funny. Cutting some of the tension makes it palatable, and many of the more traditional punchlines get big laughs. In fact, it even comes close to making the style relevant, and while it comes far too late to save the unease that permeates the film, it almost, with one more moment devoted to it, would have been excusable.

A Triumphant Trio

As every piece of promo material lets you know, this thing’s got a hell of a cast. Charlize Theron (who also produced), Nicole Kidman, and Margot Robbie portray the three main women who bring down Ailes: Kelly, Carlson, and the amalgam character Kayla Pospisil, respectively. All are leaned on to cut through the film’s flourishes and connect with the audience, and they deliver the upsetting and rattling moments Bombshell needs.

Theron and Robbie especially stand out, in part because they have more to do than Kidman, who disappears for a large portion of the film. Robbie’s Pospisil is Ailes’ new target, and through her we see the struggles of establishing yourself in this boys club and the threat that lingers behind every opportunity. The way Robbie develops her, never betraying the fact that she’s whip-smart even when her shows, makes that journey deeply upsetting and gives us the biggest glimpse into the wreckage Ailes left behind.

Theron, on the other hand, is the true lead of the film as the well-known Kelly and is positioned as the straw that breaks the camel’s back. She’s got the tough job of making a widely reviled real-life person sympathetic, and it may help that Theron doesn’t truly disappear into the role (I hadn’t realized until now how distinctive her voice is). Her Kelly is conflicted, calculating, and put in difficult position after difficult position, all of which makes the character endlessly compelling, even if you aren’t actively rooting for her.

Outside of the main trio, every supporting player is someone you’ll recognize immediately (which also contributes to the surreality of the movie), and they knock even the smallest roles out of the park. John Lithgow as Ailes is horrendous but never a monster, Kate McKinnon finally doesn’t overpower a movie, and numerous women who appear for one or two scenes form a broken web of information that they all hesitantly seem to want to connect. Whenever the film begins to stumble, there’s always someone onscreen to see you through, making every cent they spent on this cast well worth it.

Talking Points In Place Of Nuance

So great, aside from a few rough edges, they made a lively, palatable movie about rampant abuse. But did they say anything with it? That, too, is a mixed bag, as Bombshell definitely gets across the points you’re familiar with but won’t teach you anything new.

It’s not that this is lip service; the film is interested in how uncomfortable these women are, how precarious their limited power is, but this feels like a cliff notes version of how it would’ve felt to have been there. That’s partially due to that pesky, distancing style, but every situation also feels like it’s being captured at the surface level, like someone got the broad strokes but not the specificity. Could that be because this was written and directed by men? It probably didn’t help, but regardless of gender someone needed to step in and dig deeper into these people to find the anomalous behavior that would’ve made for a more complicated, meaningful message.

Conclusion: Bombshell

The events portrayed in Bombshell may have captured the world’s attention, but this film delivers too soft a punch to make the same impact. It’s hard not to feel a little let down given everything this film touches upon, but Roach and company went with making it palatable instead of difficult. You’ll have a good time watching it, and a few individual moments will make you recoil, but nothing will last after you leave the theater.

What did you think of Bombshell? Did anything strike you as particularly compelling? Let us know in the comments!

Bombshell opens in the US on December 13th, 2019 and in the UK on January 17th, 2020. For international release dates, click here.