There is a test of time to the particles we adhere in conducting our lives. We change as it is a process and the capability we have developed as humans in the shaping our minds. The understanding of the perception, the experiences in the days we lead and the remiss we commit and the value we nurture becomes one’s personality. That personality might have been residing within ourselves right from the child hood. Butchered, moulded, reshaped, rediscovered, we as a person evolve and hold close those principles as we are put through the machine of time. Rachel Armstrong (Kate Beckinsale) does the time literally in guarding her source for a story she wrote which slapped and slammed the President of the United States for wrongly invading Venezuela in the accusation over his assassination attempt. This fictional story though takes some real life events is made own into a great film by Writer/Director Rod Lurie.A film being for its greatness depends on a team work. A team work beginning in letters on a paper to the visuals and performance in supporting casts of all forms. A screenplay will take its focus on its primary character to endure that person’s pain, happiness, pleasure, arrogance and principle as prominent in writing meaty part thus giving the actor a wide chance to establish those emotions to the audience. But in the first major part of the film wherein we see the people around this issue, is a packed up unexaggerated power house performance from every single cast. Angela Basett as Rachel’s editor holds close her reporter detailing down this enormous story and the newspaper’s attorney Avril played with a ruggedness and a man of high temper by Noah Wyle. Those two whirl this tension around the already nervous Rachel on the consequences of this story. When the hell breaks loose, as Rachel we have no clue what is coming on in is a big ferocious truck ransacking her life upside down, jamming to the wall, disintegrating her into pieces and landing flat on the floor still breathing to go through it all over again.
Rachel reveals the identity of CIA operative Erica Van Doren (Vera Farmiga) in this story and the government forces to scare and bring Rachel’s source out citing the danger of national security. National Security takes precedence over anything and everything in the belief system of ardent officials. They see the righteousness in their action towards the great glory of being fanatically patriotic. Unquestionable in taking their orders as they see the pleasure in being so, they bully the civilians who have lived their life calm and serene with no threat not alone to their family but to their values they treasure. That scarcity or even the impossibility of being challenged by circumstances automatically make these so-called patriotic people wearing the flag as their skin towards a elevated stature of citing the right and wrong. One such is the FBI special prosecutor Patton Dubois (Matt Dillon), a man chiseled and proud so subtle in his passion for the job and the country he serves. He has no mercy and his care for getting the primary source of Rachel puts her directly into the scrutiny of dealing with his zeal.
In a speedy hearing where the law works a little slow, Rachel is put to jail even after a terrific support and appeal by the big gun the paper assigns for their client. He is Alan Burnside (Alan Alda), a passionate enthusiast of the apparels he wears and suggesting like-ably obtrusively to the people he meets. He respects the stand taken by Rachel in this battle. Thus begins the waiting game for the government in cracking Rachel in jail. She withstands without a blink but asked to stare at the life they are dismantling. Her husband Ray’s (David Schwimmer) patience begins to fade along with their son Tim (Preston Bailey) beginning to care less and less about the description he vividly says to her mom before she was taken away.
Vera Farmiga as the uncovered CIA operative is lethal in her portrayal. She from the uncovering carries the posture of a tough cookie. She throws away the spears of her mind on the people judging her. Here are two women being the victim of their passion. Farmiga’s character especially knows the consequences and faces it without any fear. She is broken down though and that sight brings us to our knees for this ordeal to end. And the agonizing part is we know how to end and when we see the final sequence, we who have began to respect Rachel, now completely understand her.
What Rod Lurie does is the endurance riding on us. He does not wiggle time on the minutiae of the day Rachel goes through in her doing the time. He displays the days at regular intervals and we are dismayed at those times on this woman’s persistence. Yes, when I said she goes through the test of time literally, she does it. Like the flags which loses the unfurled wagging on its mast as the wind recede, the traces of Rachel’s story and the actual cause of those dies away. We as her husband begin to see her as this obstinate and inconsiderate mother. In fact her attorney annoyed by it tells that he represents her and not her principle. Strangely at that instance we begin to get closer to Rachel than in the whole film.
This is a mighty overlooked film of 2008 which never got the light of the release. Now it is on DVD and I beg of every one to watch it over because it deserves the attention. The time wherein press are becoming these hungry monsters for bad news, this tells that there are people who fight for the cause with uncompromising attitude. After the film we beckon ourselves on the willingness to go through what Rachel does and we are scared. We are scared of that closed walls when freedom takes a walk, scared of the turmoil we would go through inside as Rachel does, scared of losing the loved ones begin to wipe away their affection, scared of the guilt of being selfish for guarding personal principles but most importantly is that we are scared to death that we would give in and make a deal with our ugly inside to be haunted forever. “Nothing But the Truth” is one of the best films of 2008.
No comments:
Post a Comment