Bombshell

By Joanna Langfield

However well intentioned, this wanna be explosive lands with a fizzle.

It may be somewhat academic, but hard to resist comparing this all star drama with the Showtime miniseries also about Roger Ailes’ firing from Fox News. The two pieces, although about the same subject, are, indeed, very different. The Loudest Voice, drawn from Gabriel Sherman’s best seller, covers more and presents Gretchen Carlson as the key to her boss’ takedown. The film, written by veterans Charles Randolph and director Jay Roach, leans more toward Megyn Kelly’s eventual participation in the workplace wide investigation into sexual harassment, begun after Carlson sued.

Personally, I am happy to see there is room (and support) for both these pieces, and hopefully, for many more about the abuse that has and can still happen in the workplace. And it is great big names (an outstanding Russell Crowe and Naomi Watts in The Loudest Voice, Nicole Kidman, Margot Robbie and Charlize Theron in Bombshell) want to sign on and add star power to such essential work. But I also wish this film was stronger artistically, not just telling a story with a lot of makeup, but conveying the too true dynamics that make the story all the more powerful.

Yes, Kidman and Robbie get a few key moments here, and they handle them well. But, as noted, this movie is really about Kelly. Somehow, under a diverting makeup and prosthetics job, Theron manages to bring some warmth to the icy Megyn. Amidst all the starry glow, what does it say that, to me, the best, most affecting performance comes from Kate McKinnon who, in a few scenes, shows us what it’s like to work for your dreams in a nightmarish world?