Zoë Strickland | Editor-in-Chief
Before going to see the film, I had heard relatively nothing about “The Post” or the Pentagon Papers scandal that it follows. Regardless, the film was an engaging and empowering political thriller that boasted impeccable acting.
The film follows the publisher and executive editor of The Washington Post — Katherine Graham, played by Meryl Streep, and Ben Bradlee, played by Tom Hanks — as they try and play catch-up with The New York Times in an effort to expose Vietnam era U.S. war secrets. Before The Washington Post can obtain enough evidence to write their own articles about the secrets, President Nixon tries to shut The New York Times’s articles down.
The release of this film couldn’t have come at a better time; “The Post” felt like an homage to the free press. The movie pits The Washington Post and The New York Times against each other, emphasizing The Washington Post’s involvement and stifling The New York Times’s. Though this made for a more intense and dramatic storyline, it felt unjust. I loved the sense of journalistic fervor presented throughout the storyline.
For the greater part of this film, I was ready for Spielberg to blow it with Graham’s character. True story or not, I almost resigned myself to the fact that Streep’s character would be lessened to the part of frail, flighty woman and that her male counterparts would have to intervene to save the paper. However, instead I witnessed an incredibly moving comeback. Streep could play publishers for the rest of her career and I would be content; her depiction of Graham was incredibly moving.
Hanks was extraordinary in his role as well; his character is driven and unrelenting.
One of my favorite things in “The Post” was the underlying sense of female empowerment. It would’ve been easy to make Graham the only speaking female role. However, the movie is powdered with minor female characters that emphasize Graham as a role model to women.
“The Post” was fantastic. It isn’t the type of movie that will keep you thinking about it for days after you see it. That being said, it’s memorable, it’s engaging and the acting is incredible.
Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu
