In my near half century on this small blue world of ours (damn, that’s depressing to see in writing), I’ve come to realize that there are three tiers, when it comes to the work of one of the finest filmmakers who’s ever lived – Steven Spielberg.
In the top level, Tier One, you have most of the man’s 1970’s, 80’s and 90’s resume to choose from. Seriously, just pick a title. On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have Tier Three, which are the undeniable Spielberg failures. Luckily, for me, there aren’t very many that deserve to be unceremoniously dumped into this category, with just that abominable piece of shit 1941 (1979) and the embarrassment that is Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) taking up space there.
Which brings us around to his Tier Two output. These are the Spielberg flicks that kind of just come…and go, without leaving too much of a cultural impact, even though it’s universally agreed that, on a technical level (at very least), they are characteristically very well done. In the hands of a lesser director, any of The Beard’s T2 movies would be considered Great.
When it comes to specific titles, the one’s that leap to mind are – Hook (1991), Amistad (1997), The Terminal (2004), War Horse (2011), Bridge of Spies (2015), The BFG (2016) and Ready Player One (2018). And now, I can safely say that I can nestle The Post in among these titles because, like the previously mentioned flicks, it’s a genuinely good movie…just not as gripping or resonating in Pop Culture as it possibly could’ve been.
The Post focuses the historically true leak to the press of a Top Secret Pentagon report detailing decades of study regarding the honest feasibility of victory in South East Asia and the escalating legal battle that ensues when The Washington Post’s publisher ‘Katharine Graham’ (Meryl Streep) and editor ‘Ben Bradlee’ (Tom Hanks) pursue publishing the story in the name of civil liberties and government transparency, at a time when the public revolt against American involvement in the ‘Nam was fast approaching a fever pitch.
As I said, this was a good film, touching on an aspect of the Vietnam War that I knew little about, which seems odd, given the uncanny amount of trivia that I, as a proud Canadian, seem to have about that particular, non-Canadian, fucked-up conflict. Regarding the actual war, the narrative touches on it very little, with a harrowing opening scene detailing an NVA ambush on a squad of American grunts in the jungle, which briefly put my 5.1 system to the test, before it delves into the behind-the-scenes back-stabbery of press-vs-government machinations in the fraught days of the turbulent 1970’s.
As with all Spielberg films, the man puts some impressively creative sequences together, even just down to interesting camera angles and compositions he employs. Given the more subdued, down-to-earth subject matter, long shots allowing scenes to play out are favored in this one, often featuring a camera that is always subtly on the move, keeping you locked in the drama, carrying the viewer from one tense discussion to another. There are many impressive dialogue sequences that simply carry on, and I write that as a Good Thing. Hanks and Streep, in particular, have a couple really good, long one-takes, and they carry them with a naturalistic edge in their deliveries and interactions (something I noted from most of the impressively expansive cast), which I found easy to appreciate.
If I had to point out a Negative, the best I can do is to acknowledge that this film, by virtue of its subject matter, won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. Some people will find it straight-up boring…and that’s fine.
But for those who appreciate the highly refined technical aspects of Spielberg’s filmmaking and have an interest in history, you’ll be well-served to give The Post a shot. It’s on those merits that I can recommend The Post to the more discerning of viewers out there.
Personally, I’m glad that I finally got around to checking this one out, Spielberg completist that I am, but if I’m honest, it’s not one of his titles that I think I’ll EVER just thrown on for shits and giggles. Good movie…just not one needing a repeat viewing for, at least, the next decade or so. If ever again.
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