Bombshell

Bombshell (2019) is about the harassment claims brought against the head of a news network, based on real events. After being dismissed, Gretchen Carlson sues Roger Ailes, who runs the channel. She files alone, and her strategy is this: if other women come forward the claim will hold. Nobody does, because everyone's contract and career depends on him. The second strand is the channel's best known presenter, Megyn Kelly. Whether to speak runs through the whole film, and speaking costs a great deal. The third character is invented: a young employee who wants to rise, through whom the system is shown working. Hers is the hardest scene. What the film understands best is complicity. Nobody is describing a single monster; human resources, the lawyers, colleagues and the network itself keep the arrangement standing. Charlize Theron's resemblance to Megyn Kelly is makeup, and that makeup won an Oscar; it is Kazu Hiro's work. Nicole Kidman, Margot Robbie and John Lithgow are in the cast. Jay Roach directed, having made the Austin Powers films. It stays close to the record but compresses some of the timing. It runs 109 minutes. Good for: true events, media, and performance. Less good for: the harassment scenes are distressing, and the film does not engage much with the characters' politics.