Why would anybody revisit American politics of the 1980s? Let me rephrase – what do you hope to accomplish by reexamining the United States under President Ronald Reagan? There’s a zero percent chance of changing somebody’s opinion of said presidency and (despite claims) there’s nothing parallel to what’s going on now. But hey, don’t let me stop you from unfurling yet another episode of “how investigative journalism went straight down the toilet.”
Gary Webb (Jeremy Renner) was an investigative reporter in the 1990s for the San Jose Mercury News. This is still a time when people imagined that investigative reporters were something more than corporate tools. Conned into helping free a drug dealer, Webb accidentally stumbles upon a connection between the CIA and inner city cocaine sales in the 1980s. I know – whaaaaaa? Story goes that Reagan wanted to fight the spread of commumism. He was willing to go to extra-constitutional means to do so; that was what Iran-Contra was all about. Kill the Messenger states that the CIA, at Reagan’s urging, imported cocaine, employed major criminals to sell the drugs in American cities, and used the dough to supply arms to the rebel forces in Central America all to defy communism. That’s a pretty hefty charge. Many will see this film as pure anti-Reagan propaganda. Of course, many think that Iran-Contra had nothing to do with Reagan, either – but there’s a big problem with that take no matter how you slice it. The same is true here.
Webb has a fine moment manipulating attorneys Tim Blake Nelson and Barry Pepper in establishing the CIA-to-Compton connection in a court of law, and then Webb’s intrigue hits Managua where Andy Garcia awaits in prison to tell his side of this outrageous claim. Oh, look, Act I has finished and everything is wrapped up all nice a neatly in a big bow. The tale is public; the world cares; our folks are happy. There’s even an award involved. I should probably just stop watching now, right?
These are the kind of roles that people get into acting for: the undercover journalist, battling THE MAN, his boss, the CIA, his rivals and his past. When you get into acting, these are the scripts that turn you on; it’s all about you, but you gotta carry it. What they don’t tell you is how many other factors go into a successful performance – in this case, a better cut would help. Acts II and III are all about Webb, which is ridiculous given that the controversy is over the verification of his articles. There’s also the timing. This might have been a great role maybe a year or so following the actual events. Now? It’s a waste of time. Oh, and this magical role to celebrate your talent? You might want to nail it. Much of this performance is Jeremy making “Flummox Face” where he stands around incredulous to the information coming his way. You’d think an undercover reporter wouldn’t surprise so easy? You’d be wrong.
And the fact that the movie spends all its time on Webb and not the accuracy of the information? You’re not convincing me that these claims are real. Even the epilogue does little more than hint that what was presented is the truth. This is the saddest revelation of all, because Iran-Contra was the unhappiest disclosure of any presidential overreach in the past forty years. Get outta here with that Lewinsky crap.
Kill the Messenger is essentially the same film as Truth … and while these films might have had relevance had they taken place in an efficient time span, they are complete non-sequiturs right now. Why? Because nobody cares about truth any longer. Who are you trying to win over here? The people who think the Reagan presidency was the pinnacle of the 20th Century can be convinced of many things but very few of them actually reside in the realm of truth. People who deny Global Warming or that the Earth is over 10,000 years old or support trickle-down economics have no capacity for understanding the depth to which Iran-Contra described a presidency out-of-control. It doesn’t matter what you have to say any more. Nobody’s listening but the people who already believed you. Despite the success of Spotlight, I’m done with the recent-history investigative biographical drama until the press earns back the respect it had decades ago.
The CIA sells coke to the inner city?
One writer discovers a truth unpretty
To attack the claim
Webb’s brought to shame
God forbid any check for veracity
Rated R, 112 Minutes
D: Michael Cuesta
W: Peter Landesman
Genre: Guess what side the press is on
Type of person most likely to enjoy this film: The late Gary Webb
Type of person least likely to enjoy this film: C.I.A., not that anybody cares
