Bombshell
Directed by: Jay Roach
Runtime: 108 minutes
Bombshell isn’t anything groundbreaking cinematically; it’s a topical biopic with smatterings of good performances. Some things were true, some things were embellished. Performers did their best impersonations of real people and were extremely uncanny in their portrayals. The narrative was crafted in a simple, linear structure and hit the right emotional beats. Most people come to these reviews expecting a simple question answered… was it good? Well… yes. As a film, there was nothing incompetent about its construction, everyone seemed to try their best, and I didn’t get distracted for 108 minutes. What elevated this film above the average mildly interesting biopic had nothing to do with the film itself, but with my relationship to it. So, dear reader, prepare for some self-indulgence.
The year was 2015. I was completing my honours year, and as usual, I spent my morning with a coffee in hand, scrolling through Facebook. While I do not remember the exact posts that preceded the point of this anecdote, I can extend my creative liberties to fill some gaps in the narrative; there was a video of a cute dog at bath-time, some hot-take on Fant4stic, and one of my old high-school acquaintances posting yet another backyard picture with their baby straddling a small tractor. I was tagged in some memes, they made me smile… it’s nice to know your friends are thinking about you. After a few scrolls down and lots of mindless brain candy, I finally hit a news story. It’s the Republican debate, Donald Trump has responded to a question about his mistreatment of women in a display of pure incompetence. Articles discuss his comments on Twitter. He made a period joke. The tiniest shred of respect for Fox News begins to form… well, for this woman anyway. I feel for her. This man will never be president, I think, laughing over my coffee.
Two years later, it was 2017 (that is how time works). Sexual misconduct allegations against Harvey Weinstein have overtaken the 24-hour news cycle. FOX CEO Roger Ailes had been fired for his misdeeds one year prior, however, my residence in Australia meant I was not privy to watching the whole story unfold. By this time, I was completing a different degree at the same University; my honours done and dusted. My morning routine remained unchanged. In a shocking twist, Donald Trump was president, and in an even bigger twist, the world had not imploded yet. Coffee in hand, I was expecting a few news articles, some cute dogs, and some decent memes. Instead, I saw long posts, written by my friends and my acquaintances, detailing instances of harassment, objectification, and abuse. These were stories I could relate to… that any female could relate to. The signature after every testimonial was the same… #metoo. I joined them and wrote my piece. The world was changing for the better, if only slightly.
Bombshell is the first film detailing events that I have not only lived through but that I have witnessed as an adult. On an objective level, the film is fine… mostly just elevated by Charlize Theron’s incredible performance as Megyn Kelly and Margot Robbie’s elegant portrayal of a character that both did and did not exist; a characterisation of lost innocence, misused ambition, and broken confidence. Sometimes the pacing of the film was a little too frantic and overstuffed, making some of the film’s decisions seem a little hastened. However, my heart ached throughout watching it. These women—women who align on a different political spectrum to me, who were from a completely different walk of life than I was—forced me to remember all of those stories I read through on that day. They made me remember my story. Bombshell may not be an important film, but it has a very important story to tell, and I will recommend it for anyone, like me, who might achieve catharsis from it.
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