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The Post 's period setting belies its bitingly timely themes, brought compellingly to life by director Steven Spielberg and an outstanding ensemble cast.

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Film Review: ‘The Post’

Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep, as the embattled leaders of The Washington Post, lead a bustlingly entertaining — and timely — docudrama about how the Pentagon Papers shifted American journalism's relationship to power.

By Owen Gleiberman

Owen Gleiberman

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Steven Spielberg ’s “ The Post ” throttles along in a pleasurably bustling, down-to-the-timely-minute way. It’s a heady, jam-packed docudrama that, with confidence and great filmmaking verve (though not what you’d call an excess of nuance), tells a vital American story of history, journalism, politics, and the way those things came together over a couple of fateful weeks in the summer of 1971. That’s when The New York Times, followed by The Washington Post, published extensive excerpts from the Pentagon Papers: the top-secret government history of the Vietnam War that revealed, for the first time, the lies told to the American people about U.S. involvement in Indochina dating back to 1945. (Most destructive lie: the hiding of the fact that U.S. leaders knew the war was a losing battle.)

The heart of the movie is set at the Post, where the paper’s executive editor, Ben Bradlee ( Tom Hanks ), with his urbane rasp, aristocrat-in-shirt-sleeves mystique, and a bite more forceful than his bark, and Katharine Graham ( Meryl Streep ), the paper’s wily socialite patrician publisher, square off like a couple of sparring partners who won’t let the fact that they’re on the same side stop them from taking a punch. Both of them want a great newspaper, one that will shake off its image as a “local paper” and do more than make headlines; they want it to make history. But they disagree on how to get there. The rascally Bradlee is like the prim and proper Graham’s id: She hired him, but can’t decide whether to encourage or repress him. Their contentious camaraderie is highly entertaining, and so is the whole movie, which pulses ahead like a detective yarn for news junkies, one that crackles with present-day parallels.

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In 1971, following the public revelation of the Pentagon Papers, both the Times and the Post stood tall against an injunction, filed by the Nixon White House, to cease publication of the classified documents — an attempt at legal clampdown that could well have snuffed the Fourth Estate as we know it. “The Post” offers not so much a message as a warning: that freedom of the press is a fight that never stops, and that the force that keeps it going is the absolute die-hard belief in that freedom. When the press begins to accept restrictions, however grudgingly, it’s all but inviting itself to be muzzled.

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That’s a lesson that has rarely needed to be heard as much as it does today. “The Post” is a movie of galvanizing relevance, one that’s all but certain to connect with an inspiringly wide audience (I predict a $100 million gross) and with the currents of awards season. That said, it’s a potently watchable movie that isn’t quite a work of art. Two of Spielberg’s recent history films were also made in a messianic spirit of topical fervor: “Munich,” a dread-inflected thriller that addressed the post-9/11 world, and “Lincoln,” a kind of dramatized time machine that commented on our own increasingly fractious and divided political arena. Yet both those films had a depth and mystery and power that transcended the moment; you could watch them 20 years from now and they would still echo. “The Post,” written by Liz Hannah and Josh Singer in a mode that’s bounding and busy and a little too expository, is a more pointedly utilitarian, less imaginative movie — it’s high-carb docudrama prose rather than poetry. You can be stirred by what it’s saying and still feel that when it’s over, the film declares more than it reverberates.

The gold standard for this sort of true-life journalistic muckraker is, of course, “All the President’s Men,” a movie that took place in the ’70s, was made in the ’70s, and tapped the alternating current of corruption and idealism that helped define the ’70s. “The Post,” by contrast, seems to be set in some fetishistic museum-piece re-creation of the ’70s, with every drag on a cigarette calling too much attention to itself (yes, a lot of people smoked — but where’s the smoky air hanging in the rooms ?), too many “casually” signposted references to dinner-party mainstays like “Scotty” Reston and Lawrence Durrell, and too many actors wearing wigs that are visibly wigs (prime culprit: Michael Stuhlbarg, in a way too shiny mop, as the New York Times executive editor Abe Rosenthal). And why does Bruce Greenwood, generally an actor of supreme subtlety, blare his lines and pop his eyes as Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, the secretly doubting hawk who commissioned the Pentagon study and then made the strategic mistake of letting someone like Daniel Ellsberg read it?

The film opens with Ellsberg, played by Matthew Rhys with a fine, forlorn rabbinical iciness, typing notes in the Vietnam combat field, then listening to McNamara on the plane ride back explain that the war is going terribly — only to watch him turn around and play the war’s booster at an airport press conference. Ellsberg is disgusted by the two faces of American policy. A research associate at the Rand Corporation, he has access to all 7,000 pages of the study, which he has spent months smuggling out, photocopying, and slipping to reporter Neil Sheehan of the Times.

Ben Bradlee can smell something is up — he’s noticed that Sheehan hasn’t had a by-line in three months — and the film hooks you with Bradlee’s cussed old-school fervor, which takes the form of his brazen desire to compete with the Times. When he and two of his reporters first see the Pentagon Papers story on a newsstand, learning about it along with everyone else, Bradlee knows how historically vital it is — but he also knows that he’s been scooped. Hanks doesn’t quite have the bone-dry gin-martini brittleness that Jason Robards summoned so memorably in “All the President’s Men,” and Hanks’ regional inflections come and go (the actor lends a Boston vowel to every 10th line or so). But he nails Bradlee’s wry and jaded WASP-renegade charisma — the star editor’s nose for truth that emerges from his acceptance of how scuzzy the world is, and how badly it needs to have the light shined on it. Despite a White House ban, Bradlee refuses to take the acerbic Judith Martin (Jessie Mueller) off the Tricia Nixon wedding, and that minor decision reflects his core values. He’s a player who’s not going to play ball.

“The Post” has some good tense scenes set in the analog era of reporting, notably when Ben Bagdikian (Bob Odenkirk), the harried Post reporter with a long-time connection to Ellsberg, hunts him down using multiple pay phones, then flies to Washington with the boxed papers in their own special seat. The shoe-leather dimension of reporting has always been more dramatic than contemporary scenes of investigators staring into their computer terminals.

At the same time, part of what rescues the movie from any vestige of preachiness is that it’s framed as a business drama. Streep’s Graham, who inherited the publisher’s mantle after her husband’s suicide, is about to take the family newspaper public, and much is made of the share price: Will it will be $24.50 or $27? That could make a difference of $3 million, which would pay for 25 reporters’ jobs. In its wonky way, “The Post” touches the first moment when people realized that American newspapers were not necessarily a growth industry. Graham’s belief — idealistic but also prophetic — is that it will be the quality of newspapers, their influence , that allows them to flourish. Streep, speaking in an imperious nasal singsong, makes Graham irresistibly knowing yet, beneath the tea-party bluster, secretly unsure of herself: the only woman in a boardroom of men, and therefore an executive who has to fly solo to find her own way.

Complicating matters is the fact that she’s close friends with Robert McNamara. Once the Pentagon Papers story breaks, will the Post go easy on him? Or will Graham follow through on Bradlee’s request and exploit the friendship to get their own copy of the papers? The answers are: No and no. But these conversations are riveting, because they transport us back to an exotic age when editors and politicians didn’t regard themselves as adversaries; they were all on the side of America. “The Post” is about how and why that era had to end. Bradlee, a former pal of JFK’s, also played the game of rubbing elbows with power. But now, disgusted by the lies revealed in the Pentagon Papers, he enunciates the new credo. “We have to be a check on their power,” he says. “If we don’t, who will?”

The movie becomes a multi-stranded tale of journalistic triumph, with Graham movingly arriving at the realization that she’s not just the caretaker of her late husband’s company; it’s her company. The decision to publish the Papers becomes nothing less than an assertion of democracy, made all the more potent when newspapers across the land publish in solidarity. The press — the media — becomes greater than the sum of its parts. But that’s because it always was. The Pentagon Papers marked an iconic moment in American history: the press claiming its own freedom to call out the excesses of power. “The Post” celebrates what that means, tapping into an enlightened nostalgia for the glory days of newspapers, but the film also takes you back to a time when the outcome was precarious, and the freedoms we thought we took for granted hung in the balance. Just as they do today.

Reviewed at Dolby 88, New York, Nov. 21, 2017. MPAA Rating: PG-13. Running time: 130 MIN.

Production: A 20th Century Fox release of a DreamWorks Pictures, Amblin Entertainment, 20th Century Fox, Participant Media, Star Thrower Entertainment production. Producers: Amy Pascal, Kristie Macosko Krieger, Steven Spielberg. Executive producers: Tom Karnowski, Josh Singer, Adam Somner, Tim White, Trevor White.
Crew: Director: Steven Spielberg. Screenplay: Liz Hannah, Josh Singer. Camera (color, widescreen): Janusz Kaminski. Editors: Sarah Broshar, Michael Kahn.
With: Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, Bruce Greenwood, Matthew Rhys, Bob Odenkirk, Michael Stuhlbarg, Sarah Paulson, Tracy Letts, Bradley Whitford, Alison Brie, Jessie Mueller, Jesse Plemons, David Cross, Carrie Coon, Zach Woods.

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Steven Spielberg’s <i>The Post</i> Is the Journalism Movie We Need Today

Steven Spielberg’s The Post Is the Journalism Movie We Need Today

I f you were a kid in the 1960s or ‘70s, perhaps even as late as the ‘90s, and your parents took a newspaper, you probably saw that paper as a grown-up thing. This was where adults went to get important and trustworthy information about the world. Therefore, newspapers would always be there—for them to die was unimaginable.

The unimaginable has nearly happened, and we’ve all heard the reason: The old model of advertising is unsustainable in the age of the Internet, or some variation thereof. But none of that explains away the need for what reporters do. The Post, Steven Spielberg’s account of the Washington Post ’s risky decision to publish the Pentagon Papers, is set in 1971, yet it’s an example of old-school filmmaking that’s modern at its core. It’s a reflection of all we stand to lose if news reporting and the outlets that support it should vanish, especially in the face of a President who strives daily to crush it. It’s the story of a woman, Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham—played here in a striking performance by Meryl Streep—who had to fight for respect at a paper she actually owned. And even if its goals are lofty, the movie is so fleet and entertaining that you never feel you’re being lectured to. This is a superhero movie for real grownups.

When Daniel Ellsberg, at the time a Defense Department analyst, leaked classified information pertaining to the Vietnam War to the New York Times, the Nixon White House was so enraged that it sought, and secured, a temporary court order barring the Times from publishing further excerpts from the documents. The Post, written by first-time screenwriter Liz Hannah and Josh Singer (Spotlight) , details the role of the Washington Post as that story began to expand and explode—which happened to coincide with the paper’s stressful preparations for an IPO, endangering the institution’s very survival.

At the center of this swirl were Katharine Graham, who had been managing the company since her husband, Philip Graham, had committed suicide eight years earlier, and Post editor Ben Bradlee (here played by a marvelous, growly Tom Hanks), whom Graham had hired in 1968, a longtime newsman who either fit the profile of the cantankerous, visionary newspaper editor or helped shape it, depending on your perspective. In an early scene, when the two meet for one of their customary breakfast meetings, the air around the table vibrates with their affable contentiousness. “Katharine, keep your finger out of my eye,” Bradlee blurts out when he thinks Graham has pushed an editorial suggestion too hard. She backs down with a girlishly innocent glance that indicates she hasn’t backed down at all. This is a woman who has worked hard at finding ways to get men to listen to her. She understands the value of a cagy, temporary retreat.

The high drama of The Post begins with Bradlee’s fuming resentment of the New York Times after it drops Ellsberg’s bombshell, though at that time, of course, no one knew that Ellsberg (played here, with muted, matter-of-fact intensity, by Matthew Rhys) was the source of the leak. “Anyone else tired of reading the news instead of reporting it?” Bradlee says, addressing no one in particular in his newsroom, but knowing full well that every one in it already feels that mix of shame, envy, and ambition common to all newspeople. The one who seems least flashy of all, Ben Bagdikian (Bob Odenkirk, in a superb performance that’s as offhandedly rumpled as the nondescript shirts he wears) will be the one to reel in the Post ’s big scoop, by obtaining the Pentagon Papers themselves from Ellsberg. Some of the movie’s most dramatic, and funniest, moments take place at an outdoor bank of payphones, where Bagdikian juggles loose change, dangling receivers and semi-memorized phone numbers as he works that quotidian magic known as great journalism.

Spielberg and ace cinematographer Janusz Kaminski get the visual details of the era just right: A faint scrim of cigarette smoke hangs around a group of journalists as they pull off a Herculean eight-hour feat. Graham’s outfits, by veteran costume designer Ann Roth, evoke a sense of prim clout—her ladylike suits both command respect and render her almost transparent, as if they were the components of a subconscious stealth mission. In the early 1970s, this was how a woman dressed when she needed to get things done.

In The Post, everything Graham does is in response to a man, or, more specifically, to something a man is trying to make her do. In real life, Graham was a rich girl, the daughter of the Post ’s owner, Eugene Meyer. When Meyer died, he left the paper to his son-in-law, Philip Graham, rather than to his daughter. That move wasn’t, and wasn’t considered, a slap in the face to his own offspring. It was simply the way things were done.

In The Post , we see Graham’s vulnerability, the way she needs to be coached by her friend and adviser Fritz Beebe (Tracy Letts), the Post ’s chairman, in preparation for the company’s IPO, and the way her composure crumbles when she’s called upon to explain the paper’s mission and strategy in an important meeting—a roomful of men, naturally. We see how her close friend Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara (Bruce Greenwood) tries to subtly manipulate her as she wrestles with the decision to publish the Papers—the revelations they contain will permanently tarnish him. And although Nixon appears in the movie only as a shadowy profile, he too seeks to intimidate Graham. This was business as usual. At every turn, there was a man ready to undermine her authority.

Streep is revered for her great-lady acting, but she’s always freshest, and most alive, in comedy. Her performance here is terrific because it’s a whirlwind eddy of both. You never know when she’s going to make an authoritative declaration or crack a sly, witty joke. When Graham takes a crucial phone call—while wearing a milky-white eveningwear caftan, having just been called away from the party she’s hosting—there’s a moment of hesitancy, as if she isn’t completely sure she’s about to do the right thing. In deciding to publish the Pentagon Papers, Graham put her paper at risk and defied a bullying president. She also exposed the ways in which the United States government, through the course of several administrations, had lied to its own people.

When Streep’s Graham renders her decision during that phone call, her voice is somehow feathery and flinty at once, but there’s no mistaking its conviction. It’s as if, in that moment, Graham was at first only seeing a future, until she realized she could instead shape one. The Post is the story of a legacy, but it’s also a rallying cry. Graham couldn’t, not even in her superhero caftan, ensure the survival of all newspapers, but she knew what journalism meant to democracy. In print or in pixels, today it still means the same.

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Review: In ‘The Post,’ Democracy Survives the Darkness

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By Manohla Dargis

Dec. 21, 2017

Steven Spielberg’s exhilarating drama “The Post” is about a subject that’s dear to the heart of journalists: themselves! Set largely during a few anxious weeks in 1971, it revisits The Washington Post’s decision to publish portions of the Pentagon Papers , an immense classified report that chronicled America’s involvement in Southeast Asia from World War II to 1968. In Mr. Spielberg’s hands, that decision becomes a ticktock thriller about the freedom of the press, the White House’s war on that constitutional right and the middle-aged woman who defended freedom in a fabulous gold caftan.

The real story began with Daniel Ellsberg , the Marine turned government researcher turned clandestine peacenik who first gave the Pentagon Papers to The New York Times . The Times began running portions on June 13, 1971. After the attorney general, John Mitchell, accused The Times of violating the Espionage Act, a judge ordered it to stop publishing the papers. At a pivotal time in American history, the government was preventing the press from getting the news out, on the grounds that it would do injury to national security. Shortly thereafter, The Post, which had been publishing rewrites of The Times’s articles, began running its own excerpts, becoming part of a Supreme Court showdown over the First Amendment.

The Pentagon Papers give “The Post” its heft and pulse; the antagonism between the government and the media gives it a shiver of topicality. Even so, shaping a drama around a newspaper that didn’t break the story seems an odd path to Hollywood triumphalism, though the scrappy Post was itching to be a national player. There’s also the matter of the actual import of the Pentagon Papers. In his memoir, Ben Bradlee, The Post’s longtime editor — winningly played by Tom Hanks with macho suavity and an on-and-off Boston accent — devotes four times as much space to Watergate (a story that his paper did break) as to the Pentagon Papers. Except that “The Post” cares less about the hard-charging Bradlee than it does his boss, Katharine Graham (Meryl Streep), the paper’s late-blooming publisher .

The story opens in 1966 with Daniel Ellsberg (Matthew Rhys), a government analyst on a data-mining mission in Vietnam, pecking out reports on his portable typewriter amid exploding bombs and flowing blood. The secretary of defense, Robert McNamara (Bruce Greenwood, wearing a frozen smile and an oil slick of hair), thinks the war is going badly but grossly mischaracterizes American progress to journalists. Disillusioned with the official script, Daniel eventually goes cloak-and-dagger rogue and is on his way to publicizing the Pentagon Papers, a momentous decision that Mr. Spielberg enlivens with spooky shadows and what may be the most nervous-making photocopying in film history.

The story soon jumps to Katharine, jolting out of a slumber, a sly preview of larger awakenings to come, both her own and that of the country. She’s about to take her company public, a move that she and a close adviser (Tracy Letts, wry and tart) hope will financially stabilize it. During the week that this business is finalized, though, the company will be temporarily vulnerable to its underwriters. The stock offering, Graham writes in her memoir, was scheduled for June 15. Two days, later, The Post had the Pentagon Papers. What happened next is a matter of record, history being the ultimate spoiler. The pleasure of “The Post” is how it sweeps you up in how it all went down.

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“We have to be the check on their power. We don’t hold them accountable, my God, who will?” Steven Spielberg ’s “The Post,” rushed into production on a turnaround time that only Ridley Scott could possibly match, may be the story of a challenge to the free press in 1971 but lines like that solidify how much it’s intended to also be read as a mirror of 2017. As the President of the United States challenges different journalistic institutions, mostly through his Twitter feed, and “truth” seems to have become a looser term than ever before, “The Post” is designed to be viewed as a commentary on today as much as yesterday, maybe even more. It’s fascinating to consider a film this well-constructed and packed with talented performers that would have played completely differently just two years ago. However, I wonder if hurrying the movie to strike a moment was the right decision. It’s a film that often calls attention to its own self-importance and falters when compared to Spielberg’s best historical dramas like “ Munich ” and “ Lincoln ,” movies that earn their messages instead of just stating them. One can almost see the weight on its shoulders to “say something important,” and it sometimes drags down the entire venture. However, there’s more than enough to like here, including a great ensemble, the best performance from a living legend in years, and, again, a message that feels depressingly timely.

“The Post” tells the story of the Pentagon Papers, choosing to focus on two key players in the unfolding battle between the free press and a White House that struggled to keep the secrets of how our government handled the Vietnam War under wraps. As Fritz Beebe ( Tracy Letts , continuing his amazing 2017) says at one point, this was the first time that the court system of our government basically tried to stop the function of the free press.

It started when Daniel Ellsberg ( Matthew Rhys ) walked away with thousands of pages on the history of Vietnam, including sensitive and confidential information that revealed the lies the government had told the American people for years. To sum it up superficially with a line from the movie, “McNamara knew we couldn’t win in ’65.” Six years later, with thousands of deaths on their hands, the truth was revealed, first in the New York Times . The courts ruled that the Times couldn’t publish any more of the documents or what they learned from them, but the Washington Post found their way into the story as well with Ben Bagdikian ( Bob Odenkirk ) getting to the same source as his competition. Suddenly, the Post was sitting on hundreds of pages of sensitive documents that the courts had ruled couldn’t be published. If they ran a story, not only could they go out of business, they could literally be arrested for treason. What would you do?

The two central figures of this story are Kay Graham ( Meryl Streep ), the beleaguered publisher of the Post , doing a good job that too many men around her consider her incapable of doing, and Ben Bradlee ( Tom Hanks ), the editor of the Post , and the man who never questions whether of not they should publish. In casting alone, Spielberg makes clear his opinion of Graham and Bradlee, filling their shoes with two of the most beloved actors of all time. And they both deliver for their director, particularly Streep, who hasn’t given a performance this nuanced in a very long time—reminding one what she can do when she’s paired with the right collaborator (my biggest problem with Streep’s ‘00s and ‘10s work is how rarely she works with directors who challenge her). Hanks finds the right degree of gravity for Bradlee as well, although both occasionally slip up due to a script that too often calls attention to itself. This story should be about Graham’s fear that she may make the wrong decision—for her business or for the state of journalism as a whole—but the stakes don’t always feel right. We never really question what anyone is going to do in “The Post,” especially given how well-reported this story has been. (Although even if you know none of this story, there’s a distinct lack of suspense.) And to make up for that lack of actual tension, co-writers Liz Hannah and Josh Singer sprinkle in heavy doses of the kind of things people only say in movies (“Jefferson just rolled over in his grave,” for example). I often wanted a more tactile, dirtier version of “The Post,” one that didn’t feel like it was taking place in a Hollywood vacuum. Bob Odenkirk almost steals the movie just by seeming the least like a mouthpiece.

However, the truth is that every time “The Post” threatens to slide into pure, pretentious melodrama, the talent of someone involved pulls it out. Whether it’s a subtle choice made by Streep or Hanks, an economy of storytelling displayed by Spielberg, a composition by John Williams —there’s always something to hold on to in “The Post” that keeps it working. Even the sound design—a symphony of typewriter clicking and ringing phones singing out through the Post offices—is engaging. It’s a movie from one of our most essential filmmakers when it comes to pure entertainment, and it works on that level. Even just the parade of familiar faces (I didn’t even mention the always-welcome presences of Carrie Coon , David Cross , Sarah Paulson , or Pat Healy ) will keep you engaged.

Will that engagement continue after the journalistic tumult of the Trump administration? If we’ve learned anything, it’s that challenges to the free press will always persist, and so there are almost certainly lessons for future generations in “The Post.” Will it hold up as cinema outside of its cultural moment? On the one hand, it doesn’t really matter. Despite what people want to argue in comments sections, film doesn’t exist in a vacuum, it often responds to and plays differently because of current events. And so while I’m curious to see how people remember “The Post” in ten years, we can only respond to it today, as institutions like the newspaper at its center are yet again under attack. Where are the Kay Grahams and Ben Bradlees of today? While I wish “The Post” asked this question more directly and angrily, there’s definite value in people this prominent asking it at all.

Brian Tallerico

Brian Tallerico is the Managing Editor of RogerEbert.com, and also covers television, film, Blu-ray, and video games. He is also a writer for Vulture, The Playlist, The New York Times, and GQ, and the President of the Chicago Film Critics Association.

David Cross as Phil Geyelin
Zach Woods as Daniel Ellsberg
Meryl Streep as Kay Graham
Matthew Rhys as Howard Simons
Bradley Whitford as Fritz Beebe
Bob Odenkirk as Ben Bagdikian
Michael Stuhlbarg as Eugene Patterson
Tracy Letts as Fritz Beebe
Kelly AuCoin as Kevin Maroney
Tom Hanks as Ben Bradlee
Alison Brie as Lally Weymouth
Sarah Paulson as Tony Bradlee
Bruce Greenwood as Robert McNamara
Pat Healy as Phil Geyelin
Jesse Plemons as Roger Clark
Carrie Coon as Meg Greenfield

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Janusz Kaminski
John Williams
Josh Singer
Michael Kahn
Sarah Broshar
Steven Spielberg

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'The Post' Is A Crackling Newsroom Thriller With Electrifying Relevance

Justin Chang

Steven Spielberg's new drama revisits The Washington Post 's 1971 decision to publish the Pentagon Papers in defiance of the Nixon administration. Justin Chang calls it "terrifically entertaining."

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Common Sense Says
Parents Say 14 Reviews
Kids Say 13 Reviews

Common Sense Media Review

Well-acted, relevant drama about freedom of the press.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 13+?

A use of "f--k," plus few uses of "s--t," "goddamn,&quo

Adults drink wine, champagne, and hard liquor at receptions/dinner parties. Smok

The opening scene takes place during the Vietnam War and shows a battle in which

Any Positive Content?

Strongly reminds viewers of the importance of freedom of the press, not for thos

Kay Graham is a determined, brave woman who follows the path of integrity and du

A use of "f--k," plus few uses of "s--t," "goddamn," "hell," "ass," "son of a bitch," "t-t," "Jesus Christ" and "oh my God" as exclamations.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Adults drink wine, champagne, and hard liquor at receptions/dinner parties. Smoking.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Violence & Scariness

The opening scene takes place during the Vietnam War and shows a battle in which many American soldiers are killed.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Positive Messages

Strongly reminds viewers of the importance of freedom of the press, not for those who govern but for those who are governed. When Nixon wages war against the New York Times , the Washington Post editor and publisher choose to stand with it and fulfill its mission, even though it makes politicians who are also their friends look irresponsible. Argues that freedom of the press is an essential aspect of American society and that leaders should not act in a dictatorial manner. Graham and many of her colleagues demonstrate integrity in their choices and actions.

Positive Role Models

Kay Graham is a determined, brave woman who follows the path of integrity and duty, even when her many (male) confidants advise her against it. Ben Bradlee believes in standing on the side of freedom of the press, even it has consequences for him and the paper. Whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg is portrayed as courageous for leaking the documents in the spirit of transparency and because he believes the American people deserve to know the truth.

Parents need to know that The Post is director Steven Spielberg 's historical drama about how the reporters, editors, and publishers of the Washington Post decided to follow the New York Times ' lead and publish the top-secret Pentagon Papers in 1971. Starring Meryl Streep as Post publisher Kay Graham and Tom Hanks as executive editor Ben Bradlee, the drama is sociopolitically relevant and clearly a response to the current presidential administration's antagonistic relationship with the press. The movie promotes the sanctity of freedom of the press and its ability to expose political deceit and corruption. Graham's character also exemplifies how difficult it used to be (and still is) for female bosses to lead without being second-guessed or undermined. There's not much iffy stuff in the movie except for a few swear words and a quick opening scene that takes place during the Vietnam War. Families who watch together can discuss how the story relates to today and why freedom of the press is an important hallmark of American society. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Parent and Kid Reviews

Parents say (14)
Kids say (13)

Based on 14 parent reviews

The Post Makes History

Good for kids interested in politics, what's the story.

Director Steven Spielberg 's THE POST follows the early '70s events leading up to the controversial publication of a classified study about the Vietnam War known as the Pentagon Papers in the Washington Post , after it was first leaked to the New York Times . When Post political reporter Ben Bagdikian ( Bob Odenkirk ) discovers that source Daniel Ellsberg ( Matthew Rhys ) has the same leaked documents the Times reported, Bagdikian brings a copy to his editor, Ben Bradlee ( Tom Hanks ). Bradlee must convince publisher Kay Graham ( Meryl Streep ) to publish articles that reveal how many administrations knew that America's involvement in the Vietnam War was futile. Graham trusts Bradlee but is cautioned by others against allowing him to publish, because it puts the paper's financial future at risk -- and opens her up to prosecution from the Nixon administration.

Is It Any Good?

Streep and Hanks shine in Spielberg's timely defense of the press and its freedom to expose corruption -- even when it implicates or embarrasses those in political power. Rather than focusing on Neil Sheehan and the New York Times ' scoop of the Pentagon Papers, Spielberg chronicles how the Washington paper of record, and specifically its legendary female publisher, Graham, dealt with the decision to publish Ellsberg's top-secret documents. There was a lot more for Graham to lose by publishing -- the future of her business was at stake -- but she observes and listens to her advisors (all men) and then makes her own decision. Streep, as one would expect, is marvelous as "Mrs. Graham," a wealthy woman thrust into her family business's leadership role after her husband's unexpected suicide. But Graham is much more than a storied hostess and D.C. insider. She's thoughtful and intelligent, and she bravely stands up for herself in the face of concerned -- and condescending -- male confidants.

The acting ensemble is excellent overall, starting at the top with Streep and Hanks and trickling down to supporting players like Tracy Letts and Bradley Whitford as Graham's advisers, Odenkirk as Pulitzer-winning reporter Ben Bagdikian, and Sarah Paulson as Bradlee's then-wife, Tony. It's a master class in acting to watch Streep and Hanks share a scene. Despite Bradlee's outsize personality, Hanks doesn't chew the scenery, and Streep's nuanced performance shines -- especially in the moment when she reminds board members and friends that the newspaper doesn't belong to her late father or her husband, but to her. The events portrayed in The Post may have taken place in the early 1970s, but the themes -- women in power struggling with sexism, the press exposing the president, political cover-ups and corruption -- could have been taken from more recent headlines.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about how the story of the Post is relevant to today's relationship between politicians and the press. What parallels do you see? What differences?

How accurate do you think the movie is to what actually happened? Does the movie make you want to learn more about the history of the Pentagon Papers? Consider reading Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War by award-winning nonfiction author Steve Sheinkin .

Are Graham and Bradlee role models ? How about Daniel Ellsberg? Why, or why not? Describe their character strengths .

Why do you think Spielberg decided to concentrate on the Post 's decision, rather than the Times '? Does that decision make it more relevant to what's going on between politicians and the press today?

Movie Details

In theaters : December 22, 2017
On DVD or streaming : April 17, 2018
Cast : Meryl Streep , Tom Hanks , Bob Odenkirk
Director : Steven Spielberg
Inclusion Information : Female actors
Studio : Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation
Genre : Drama
Topics : History
Character Strengths : Integrity
Run time : 115 minutes
MPAA rating : PG-13
MPAA explanation : language and brief war violence
Last updated : July 30, 2024

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Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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The 33 movies Washington Post reviewers loved in 2022 - and where to watch them

In a season of Top 10 lists, here’s one on steroids: We looked through the last 12 months of movie reviews and found 33 films that received 3½ or 4 stars from our critics. Ranging from such mainstream fare as “Top Gun: Maverick” and “Nope” to “You Won’t Be Alone” – a little Macedonian-language art-house horror film about a 19th-century witch – the list is a reminder of all the varied ways in which movies delight us.

Plus, it’s a great watch list to bookmark for those cold winter nights ahead. Some of these gems are still in theaters. A couple have moved on and aren’t available to stream just yet. Most are available now on a variety of streaming platforms.

“The Bob’s Burgers Movie” (PG-13): “The strange appeal of ‘Burgers,’ both the show and the film, is precisely in its mix of the mundane and the pointless (or, to be kinder, the absurd). It is a blend of proprietary seasoning, savory to those who have developed an appetite for it, perhaps sickening to some others, that is preserved lovingly in ‘The Bob’s Burgers Movie.’” (Hulu) — Michael O’Sullivan

“Emergency” (R): “Comedy is best when it occupies that high wire where humor and pain engage in a perilously delicate dance. ‘Emergency’ knows that they exist side by side – and with that in mind, it sticks a perfect landing.” (Prime Video) — Ann Hornaday

“Empire of Light” (R): “In ‘Empire of Light,’ the theater is a great democratizer: a convener for misfits, loners and dreamers of every stripe. With this bittersweet gem of a film, (writer-director Sam) Mendes has given spectators a modest but profound gift: the reminder that, at their best, movies offer us not just a refuge, but a way to join the thrum of life, in all its pain and ungovernable glory.” (In theaters) — Ann Hornaday

“Eo” (Unrated): “Through a donkey’s large and expressive eyes, ‘Eo’ shows us the beauty of the world and the cruelty of humanity. If the wordless title character can’t understand the latter, neither can director and co-writer Jerzy Skolimowski. Yet the esteemed 84-year-old Polish director has made the animal’s story as visually ravishing as it is emotionally devastating.” In Polish, Italian, English and French with subtitles. (In theaters) — Mark Jenkins

“The Fabelmans” (PG-13) : “Let the record reflect that ‘The Fabelmans,’ Steven Spielberg’s self-portrait of the artist as a young man, ends with one of the best final scenes in recent memory. That scene – and the wink that follows it – is reason enough to see a movie that, true to its title, lends a gentle fairy-tale sheen to even the most painful memories of the filmmaker’s youth.” (In theaters) — Ann Hornaday

“Fire of Love” (PG): “You think your love life is hot? For French volcanologists Katia and Maurice Krafft, their shared passion burned with the heat of a planet on fire. Director Sara Dosa’s documentary ‘Fire of Love’ assembles explosive footage from the Krafft archives to tell the fevered story of a science-minded Romeo and Juliet, so dedicated to each other and their work that they died together, victims of a pyroclastic flow during a 1991 eruption of Mount Unzen in Japan.” In French and English with some subtitles. (Disney+) — Pat Padua

“Good Luck to You, Leo Grande” (R): “Because ‘Good Luck to You, Leo Grande’ takes place almost entirely in the same hotel room over the course of several weeks, it could easily feel stagy or monotonous or cramped. But director Sophie Hyde, working from a smart, nuanced script by Katy Brand, provides just enough space and pace for Emma Thompson and (Daryl) McCormack’s chemistry to combust, seemingly in real time.” (Hulu) — Ann Hornaday

“Great Freedom” (Unrated): “The grim setting, regardless of time period, is the seemingly unchanging hell of prison, in which Hans (Franz Rogowski) is shown being thrown into the darkness of solitary confinement in one decade, only to emerge from the shadows in another, in a story whose constants include the fact that Hans, for some reason, has resigned himself to his fate.” In German and some English with subtitles. (Mubi) — Michael O’Sullivan

“Happening” (R): “In ‘Happening,’ a promising young college student named Anne Duchesne (Anamaria Vartolomei) discovers, to her dismay, that she is pregnant, after a sexual encounter that occurred before the events of the French film. Set in 1963, when abortion was still illegal in France – and when vigorous prosecution could result in prison for the patient or the practitioner (often not a doctor) – the story follows, in harrowing detail and without moral judgment, Anne’s efforts to terminate her pregnancy.” In French with subtitles. (AMC+) — Michael O’Sullivan

“Jackass Forever” (R): “’Jackass Forever’ feels like a victory lap of sorts for (Johnny) Knoxville and company, who can rest their broken bones and concussed heads knowing that they have cemented their place in the pantheon of cinematic dumdums. Their message? Pain is universal, and inevitable. All you need are kindred spirits to laugh at the futility of thinking otherwise.” (Paramount+) — Hau Chu

“Lost Illusions” (Unrated): “It’s no stuffy costume drama. Just close your eyes and imagine its characters in modern dress, toiling away in digital publishing, and its wild delusions and deceptions could be happening right now.” In French with subtitles. (Mubi) — Pat Padu a

“A Love Song” (PG): “In a filmmaking universe where Michael Bay and Zack Snyder seem to be in a battle to see who can damage more eardrums, first-time feature writer and director Max Walker-Silverman has taken the opposite tack. There is sound, including an excellent soundtrack and score, but there is no noise. It’s the cinematic equivalent of a deep breath and a cool drink.” (On demand) — Kristen Page-Kirby

“Memoria” (PG): “As they lose their narrative mooring, the various parts of the whole have the effect of rearranging your own consciousness, in a way that leaves your perceptions feeling profoundly altered, perhaps permanently. Is that not the measure of all great art? (‘Memoria’ won the Jury Prize at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, shared with ‘Ahed’s Knee.’)” In English and Spanish with subtitles. (Not available on demand. Visit memoria.film for updated screening information.) — Michael O’Sullivan

“Nope” (R): “The acting here is quite good, particularly by (Daniel) Kaluuya, who exudes the strong, silent air of a modern Gary Cooper, all shrugs and monosyllables, and (Keke) Palmer, who is his much more expressive foil. But ‘Nope’ ultimately belongs to its director, not its actors. Whether we’re watching some heavy CGI in the sky or flashback scenes featuring a rampaging primate (played by Terry Notary in an impressive motion-capture performance) or simply Kaluuya on horseback – a new kind of western hero in an orange hoodie – (Jordan) Peele tells his story visually, not verbally.” (On demand) — Michael O’Sullivan

“Official Competition” (R): “The ridiculous yet often revered art of make-believe peculiar to the business of moviemaking is somehow simultaneously skewered and held up in admiring regard in ‘Official Competition,’ a sly satire of cinema that also manages to be a showcase for the comedic chops of its stars: Penélope Cruz, Antonio Banderas and Oscar Martínez.” In Spanish with subtitles. (AMC+) — Michael O’Sullivan

“The Outfit” (R): “Set in 1956, it’s a cleverly twisty crime story constructed of many invisible folds and threads, yet it fits (Mark) Rylance like custom-made clothing. (Fun fact: The actor, who immersed himself in the skills of tailoring in preparation for the role, made the suit he wears in the film.)” (Prime Video) — Michael O’Sullivan

“Petite Maman” (PG): “’Petite Maman’ is what every film should be: powerfully, even arrestingly original; grounded in emotional truth; hyper-specific; deeply universal; strange; mesmerizing; and not a minute longer than necessary. It is, in short, a small wonder.” In French with subtitles. (Hulu) — Michael O’Sullivan

“The Phantom of the Open” (R): “Just a glance or two at the trailer for ‘The Phantom of the Open’ – a dramedy loosely based on the true story of Maurice Flitcroft, a British crane operator who somehow managed to compete in the 1976 British Open despite never having previously played a round of golf – might lead you to roll your eyes. But just hang on, and give this sly little gem of a film a chance.” (On demand) — Michael O’Sullivan

“Roald Dahl’s Matilda: The Musical” (PG): “Behold a Broadway musical that sings, dances and bedazzles so magnetically, it feels as if it were ordained for the screen by divine providence. ‘Roald Dahl’s Matilda: The Musical’ certainly is divine, but the inspirational figures are all mortal: a director, Matthew Warchus; a star, Emma Thompson; and a cast of perpetually whirling child wonders who propel the story forward with kinetic enchantment.” (Netflix) — Peter Marks

“She Said” (R): “(Director Maria) Schrader takes a page from the great journalism movies – most notably ‘All the President’s Men’ and, more recently, ‘Spotlight’ – by paring down the narrative to its leanest, most unfussy elements. ‘She Said’ begins with a clever misdirect, with (New York Times reporter Megan) Twohey, played with whippetlike intensity by Carey Mulligan, seeming to be talking about (film producer Harvey) Weinstein when in fact the subject is (Donald) Trump, who as the movie opens is a presidential candidate.” (On demand) — Ann Hornaday

“Tár” (R): “(Writer-director Todd) Field has made a film about exploitation and self-loathing and compulsion, but with an extravagant eye for beauty and surface polish that makes it deeply pleasurable to watch. It would be enjoyable enough simply to behold (Cate) Blanchett have her way with a role that she slips on with the grace and familiarity of one of Lydia’s bespoke suits. But Field has surrounded her with supporting performances that are just as alert.” (In theaters) — Ann Hornaday

“Three Minutes: A Lengthening” (PG): “The shattering climax of ‘Three Minutes: A Lengthening’ is a slow zoom into Nasielsk’s public square (in Poland), set to the testimony of witnesses to the deportation of 1,600 Jews in December 1939. That testimony, as well as the film’s narration, is read by Helena Bonham Carter in an exquisite vocal performance. Her dulcet tones and sensitive line interpretations draw us into a world that, in the film’s relatively brief running time, feels utterly immersive, even life-changing.” (Hulu) — Ann Hornaday

“Till” (PG-13): “The implication of the violence visited upon (Emmett Till) by two White men – (Carolyn) Bryant’s husband, Roy Bryant, and his half brother J.W. Milam, who both confessed to the killing in a 1956 magazine profile but were never convicted of any crime – was more hideous than anything captured on film. That is the story told, with unflinching honesty and to devastating effect, by the movie ‘Till,’ which begins with (Emmett’s mother) Mamie (Danielle Deadwyler, in an Oscar-worthy performance of maternal grief turned resolve) setting Emmett (Jalyn Hall) on a train from Chicago to visit his cousins in Mississippi.” (In theaters; available Jan. 17 to rent on demand) — Michael O’Sullivan

“Top Gun: Maverick” (PG-13): “In the film’s most affecting sequence, Pete (Tom Cruise) goes to see his old frenemy Iceman (Val Kilmer), who may be physically diminished but is no less distinguished; it’s a get-out-your-mankerchiefs moment played with taste, restraint and sincerity that’s as disarming as it is quietly authentic.” (Paramount+) — Ann Hornaday

“Triangle of Sadness” (R): “With ‘Triangle of Sadness,’ (Swedish writer-director Ruben) Östlund is returning to form, with all the strengths and flaws his now-distinctive narrative style entails. There are few filmmakers working today who are as eager to tackle life as we know it – without benefit of superheroes, pseudo-medieval mythologies or lockstep genre conventions – and give it a swift satirical kick where it hurts.” (On demand) — Ann Hornaday

“Turning Red” (PG): “’Turning Red’ delivers a bigger, and in some ways more universal message: It’s okay to not always be in control, to let your freak flag fly. To paraphrase Sigmund Freud, sometimes a red panda is just a red panda. And sometimes it’s a metaphor for that inner spark of creativity, the flame of originality that is to be cherished, not extinguished. With ‘Turning Red,’ (director and co-writer Domee) Shi demonstrates that she’s got it, in spades.” (Disney+) — Michael O’Sullivan

“The Velvet Queen” (Unrated): “If the idea of a movie about two men perched on a cold mountain ridge in Tibet, hoping to catch a glimpse of an elusive snow leopard – and, at least for much of the film, failing to do so – sounds appealing, then consider ‘The Velvet Queen.’ There I go, making this ‘nature documentary’ (one that never needs air quotes around it more desperately) sound boring. I apologize: Even if the idea of this film does not appeal to you, please consider it anyway.” In French and Tibetan with subtitles. (On demand) — Michael O’Sullivan

“Vengeance” (R): “The movie ‘Vengeance’ – a black comedy about cultural arrogance, the opioid crisis, guns, storytelling and the need to, well, get even – marks the feature debut of writer-director-producer B.J. Novak (best known as a writer, director, producer and ensemble cast member of ‘The Office’). To call Novak’s first feature auspicious would not be wrong, but it’s more than that. ‘Vengeance’ is an arrestingly smart, funny and affecting take on a slice of the American zeitgeist, one in which both the divisions between and connections with our fellow citizens are brought into sharp relief.” (On demand) — Michael O’Sullivan

“Vortex” (R): “With his latest film, ‘Vortex,’ the 58-year-old provocateur (Gaspar Noé) pulls off perhaps his most subversive move yet: creating a quiet, compassionate and ultimately devastating film about the twilight days of an elderly couple.” In French with subtitles. (Mubi) — Hau Chu

“Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America” (PG-13): “At the top of the excellent documentary ‘Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America,’ we hear a solicitation, put to a 2018 audience at New York City’s Town Hall theater by the evening’s host, attorney Jeffery Robinson (former ACLU deputy legal director): ‘If you have ever owned a slave, please raise your hand.’ And then, when no hands go up, Robinson, who since 2011 has been delivering some version of this talk – akin to a PowerPoint presentation on racism, complete with audiovisual clips – explains the point of asking what sounds like a rhetorical question, but isn’t.” (On demand) — Michael O’Sullivan

“The Woman King” (PG-13): “’The Woman King’ proves to be an opulent addition to a form of filmmaking that has long been searching for a refresh. What’s more, it knows that the real spectacle doesn’t reside in special effects or brutality for its own sake, but in the woman who holds the center of the narrative through her singular brand of charisma, aching transparency and sheer indomitable will. ‘The Woman King’ may be a fable, but its power is real: Her name is Viola Davis, and she’s nothing less than magnificent.” (In theaters; available Jan. 17 to rent on demand) — Ann Hornaday

“You Won’t Be Alone” (R): “The international folk horror renaissance, marked by such shivery recent treats as the Icelandic ‘Lamb’ and the Irish ‘You Are Not My Mother,’ continues with ‘You Won’t be Alone,’ a creepy yet hauntingly beautiful fable of a witch who yearns to be human. The assured feature debut of Macedonian-born, Australia-based Goran Stolevski (one of Variety’s 10 directors to watch for 2022) is set in rural 19th-century Macedonia, and opens with the visit of a hideously burn-scarred witch (Anamaria Marinca) – known to villagers as both Old Maid Maria and the Wolf-Eateress, or Volkojatka – to a peasant woman and her infant daughter, Nevena.” In Macedonian with subtitles. (On demand) — Michael O’Sullivan

“You Resemble Me” (Unrated): “’You Resemble Me’ would be a vivid, beautifully acted reflection of dispossession and cultural dislocation if it stayed one thing. But, like its mercurial protagonist, it changes shape to become a deeply meaningful meditation on narrative itself, blending fact and fiction into a seamlessly poetic whole.” In French and Arabic with subtitles. (Not yet available on demand) — Ann Hornaday

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How did luke skywalker get yoda's lightsaber to offer to grogu, 10 lowest-grossing dc movies, ranked from worst to best, the post is an expertly-crafted and compelling film brought to tantalizing life by a master director and an all-star ensemble cast..

The Post is the latest historical drama from director Steven Spielberg, following his recent Oscar-winning efforts such as Lincoln and Bridge of Spies . The project came together very quickly last year, with the cast and crew assembling in March to get it through the pipeline. Given the nature of its story, there's an obvious parallel to be made to the current United States administration and its strenuous relationship with the media, which is why Spielberg and his team felt it was so necessary to move swiftly and get it to the big screen while the material is still timely. Whenever a film is rushed along, there's always a risk it was developed too fast, but that isn't the case here. The Post is an expertly-crafted and compelling film brought to tantalizing life by a master director and an all-star ensemble cast.

In the early 1970s while America is in the midst of the Vietnam War, the Washington Post is a small local paper trying to keep up with larger outlets like the New York Times . Led by Kay Graham (Meryl Streep), the country's first female newspaper publisher, the company is hoping to improve it fortunes by going public on the stock market. Meanwhile, tenacious editor Ben Bradlee (Tom Hanks) is constantly on the prowl for any story he can find, looking for anything that can give him an edge over the competition.

The country is rocked to its core when the Times publishes a searing exposé detailing the shocking truth behind America's involvement in Vietnam and how four different U.S. presidents covered it up. After President Richard Nixon bars the paper from publishing further stories on the matter until a court hearing, Post reporter Ben Bagdikian (Bob Odenkirk) is able to acquire the classified documents for the Washington Post through a source. Graham then has to make the most important decision of her career: either publish the "Pentagon Papers" and fulfill her company's obligation to the general public or hold so she doesn't endanger the paper's future.

As indicated above, The Post (despite its 1970s setting) is very timely today, with a message about the importance of the First Amendment and freedom of the press. While it's quite clear what Spielberg is saying, he deserves credit for tastefully handling it in a way so that it never comes across as too preachy. Even without the connection to modern politics, The Post works as a well-told and entertaining story on its own merit. Much of the credit there has to be given to co-writers Liz Hannah and Spotlight Oscar-winner Josh Singer (working in familiar territory) for their approach to the script. The integration of the subplot involving Graham taking the paper public is weaved in to the main narrative nicely, providing the audience with layers to contemplate. Their screenplay isn't a simple surface-level examination, and the film is all the better for it.

From a directorial sense, Spielberg remains at the top of his game - working with a kind of movie he's grown quite comfortable in during the latter stages of his career. He makes the excellent decision to incorporate actual audio from the real Richard Nixon, injecting a sense of dread in the tale by giving the plucky Post gang a true villain to work against and showing the younger members of the audience (who didn't live through these events) the threats from the President are not sensationalized for the sake of the film's agenda. Unsurprisingly, Spielberg also maintains a strong sense of pace, as The Post zips along in engaging fashion, clocking in at just under two hours. Multiple scenes are elevated by John Williams' musical score, which adds palpable tension to basic conversations and pulls at the heartstrings when called upon. Once again, the legendary duo work their magic.

The work in front of the camera is just as impressive. Hanks plays slightly against type as an editor with a rough exterior, willing to bend morals (and arguably, the law) in order to get his job done. But the actor also demonstrates the softer side of Bradlee in several key sequences, painting him as a man dedicated to doing the right thing no matter what the cost. Hanks had big shoes to fill playing Bradlee decades after Jason Robards won an Oscar for that role in All the Presidents Men , but he's more than up for the task. Streep is also terrific as Graham, shouldering a powerful emotional through-line of what it means to be a woman making a name for herself in the face of doubt. She has a very satisfying arc over the course of the film, with numerous scenes displaying why Streep is an icon in her profession. When the two leads share the screen, it's captivating to watch them work and play off each other.

The Post focuses primarily on Hanks and Streep, but the supporting cast is also very good. Odenkirk has one of the meatier parts, showcasing his range by portraying a well-intentioned journalist happy to help in the investigation. Bruce Greenwood also has a strong presence as former Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, serving as a key lynchpin in the primary conflict about what the paper should do with their newfound information. The remainder of the roster is a who's who of character actors to round out the Post staff and their families, all making the most of what they have to work with - even if their screen time is minimal. There are no bad performances to be found here.

Of all of this year's awards contenders, The Post is perhaps the one that fits the mold of traditional "Oscar bait" the most, but it rises above that label by never being too ponderous or ploying. Yes, the social commentary is apparent for anyone paying attention to the headlines, but Spielberg presents his story in such a way it's hard not to get onboard. History buffs and cinephiles will find something to enjoy here, and The Post is certainly worth catching in theaters as it awaits whatever Academy Award nominations come its way.

The Post is now playing in U.S. theaters. It runs 116 minutes and is rated PG-13 for language and brief war violence.

Let us know what you thought of the film in the comments!

The Post is a dramatic thriller directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks and tells the story of the unexpected partnership between The Washington Post’s Katharine Graham, the first female publisher of a major American newspaper, and editor Ben Bradlee. The two will work tirelessly and race to catch up with The New York Times to expose a massive cover-up of government secrets spanning three decades.

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Review: Steven Spielberg’s ‘The Post’ is a movie about the past that speaks to our times

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“The Post” goes against the contemporary Hollywood grain. Propulsive major studio cinema made with a real-world purpose in mind, it’s a risky venture that succeeds across the board.

Prodded into existence by Steven Spielberg, one of the few filmmakers capable of making the studio system do his bidding and of convincing major players like Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks to go along with him, “The Post” takes on a particularly counterintuitive subject.

That would be the Washington Post’s 1971 role in publishing what came to be known as the Pentagon Papers, a top-secret 47-volume, 7,000-page Department of Defense study of the war in Vietnam that exposed all manner of official prevarications and outright lies extending over the terms of four presidents.

For one thing, as the gripping Liz Hannah and Josh Singer script makes clear, the breaking of this story was initially owned lock, stock and barrel by the paper’s rival the New York Times, which may be why Post editor Ben Bradlee gave it only 14 pages in his autobiography compared with 60 pages for Watergate.

For another, there has already been an excellent Washington Post movie in “All the President’s Men.” Also, given that the Oscar-winning pro-journalism drama “Spotlight” came out just two years ago, the market wasn’t necessarily desperate for another one.

And that’s just the point. “The Post” is the rare Hollywood movie made not to fulfill marketing imperatives but because the filmmakers felt the subject matter had real and immediate relevance to the crisis both society and print journalism find themselves in right now.

When Spielberg recently told the Hollywood Reporter, “I realized this was the only year to make this film,” he was speaking to what he saw as the immediate need for a project that in effect commandeers yesterday to comment on today.

Aiming to combine what the director calls “a chase film with journalists” with an essential civics lesson, “The Post” showcases the value of newspapers hanging together and holding government accountable for deception even in the face of possibly crippling financial pressures.

Given that Spielberg only committed to “The Post” in March while already involved in the effects-laden “Ready Player One,” due out early next year, this film had to be made with remarkable speed to meet the 2017 deadline.

Collaborating with his regular team, including cinematographer Janusz Kaminski, editor Michael Kahn (Sarah Broshar co-edited), production designer Rick Carter and composer John Williams (costume designer Ann Roth is new to the group), Spielberg seems to have been energized by the self-imposed time restraints.

“The Post,” made with the pacing of a thriller, has an appealing sense of urgency about it, with the director, echoing newspaper films past like Sam Fuller’s “Park Row,” working in a lean, focused style that also feels loose and unconstrained.

Though Hanks’ Bradlee is obviously a key player, “The Post” is really about the professional coming of age of Streep’s Katharine Graham, the owner of the Post.

Daughter and widow of the two previous Post owners, respectively, and not anyone who thought she’d ever be in charge, Graham had to simultaneously navigate the shoals of Wall Street by taking her company public while considering publishing secret information that could both hurt the public offering and land key people in jail.

(According to the press material, first-time screenwriter Hannah’s script focused more on Graham, so Singer, an Oscar winner for “Spotlight,” was brought on to pump up Bradlee and the rest of the newsroom staff.)

Before we get to that newsroom, however, “The Post” flashes back to Vietnam in 1966, when a young Daniel Ellsberg (Matthew Rhys) hangs with troops on a fact-finding mission for Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara (Bruce Greenwood).

Shocked to hear McNamara say one thing in private about U.S. military prospects and something else to the press, Ellsberg helps write a massive report for the Rand Corp. on American involvement that we see him sneak out of its offices in the dead of night in order to make Xerox copies.

Bradlee, for his part, might be dealing with mundane problems like how to cope with President Nixon’s attempt to bar Post reporters from covering daughter Tricia’s wedding, but he’s heard rumors that the New York Times is onto something big.

Playing catch-up once the Times publishes, Bradlee assigns reporter Ben Bagdikian (Bob Odenkirk), who has a hunch Ellsberg is the source of the leak, to obtain the Post’s own copy of the papers.

When the Nixon administration asks a federal judge to enjoin the Times from publishing, Bradlee sees an opportunity. “If the Times shuts down,” he says, “we’re in business.”

But first he has to persuade Graham, who wants to believe that “quality and profitability” go hand in hand for newspapers, but worries that repercussions of publishing will doom the public offering.

Screenwriters Hannah and Singer nicely marshal their arguments here (“We have to be a check on their power,” Bradlee says, “if we don’t hold them accountable who will?”) and the parallels to the position of the press today are strong and vivid, as they are meant to be.

Though “The Post’s” supporting players are key, the film is in some ways a two-hander, and both Hanks and Streep understand that their push-pull relationship is the film’s emotional center.

Realizing that he does not physically resemble Bradlee as “President’s Men” Oscar winner Jason Robards did, Hanks finds his own path to make the editor come alive, while the remarkable way Streep captures and conveys Graham’s essence is quite special.

One of the intriguing aspects of “The Post” are the connections between its creators and top journalists. Producer Amy Pascal is married to former New York Times reporter Bernard Weinraub and Spielberg has dedicated the film to the late Nora Ephron, who, along with her husband, Nick Pileggi, were summer house neighbors of Spielberg’s in New York’s Hamptons. “The Post’s” message is personal for him, and he’s done all he can to make audiences feel the same way.

Rating: PG-13 for language and brief war violence

Running time: 1 hour, 55 minutes

Playing: ArcLight, Hollywood; ArcLight, Sherman Oaks; Landmark, West Los Angeles

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The Post movie review: Saving private citizens

When I saw Spotlight, it made me proud to be a journalist. Even though I only write about movies, I felt proud to be part of a profession that exposes the truth. The Post not only reinvigorated my pride to be a journalist, but gave me hope for the future. If The Washington Post could fight Richard Nixon, journalism can prevail again.

Back in 1971, The Washington Post was a struggling local paper of D.C. whose publisher, Kay Graham (Meryl Streep) was making an IPO to help keep the paper afloat. The New York Times was scooping the Post on anything political, but when Nixon’s injunction halted the Times’ reports on the Pentagon Papers, that was the window The Post seized to become relevant.

The Post ratchets up the tension of this debate via Liz Hannah and Josh Singer’s incisive script. What pages do they pick out of 4000? Which are the most incriminating? How can they be sure they’re not publishing compromising war data that would be criminal?

One mistake could end journalism. It’s not just one paper. They can’t afford to print more news if they’re shut down or sold off, and if the President can do that, no news is safe.

These debates flow through the Bradlee house with different groups of characters arguing. Spielberg really milks the triumphant moment of Graham’s decision. It’s a phone call but there’s nothing Spielberg can’t turn into pivotal cinema.

Everyone’s part in the Post story is so vital, each character has weight, and the actors give their performances the weight of conviction. It is exhilarating to watch them go to bat for their causes.

Legal counsel Roger Clark (Jesse Plemons) has a point about the exposure to which they’re opening themselves. Bagdikian has a point about protecting his source.

Money men Fritz Beebe (Tracy Letts) and Afthur Parsons (Bradley Whitford) don’t want to go bankrupt, and really don’t want to go to jail. Even the proofreader has to make sure the text passes in time to hit the presses.

Bradlee has a point about the philosophical importance of a single news story. He’s not frivolous. It wouldn’t help journalism much to call the President’s bluff on a regular basis, but he sees the longterm benefit of standing his ground.

The Post gives Graham the most credit for her bravery. More than Graham is even aware of, the film conveys how she had the most to lose among all these high stakes. And she saved journalism.

Early scenes about old school newsrooms warmed my heart. I came of age in the freelance era so I’ve never worked in a newsroom. They sent spies to rival offices to check their front page layouts and stood by their reporters.

Bradlee already refuses to back down to Nixon over covering his daughter’s wedding. I’ve been blessed to have several editors who’d go to bat for me over ethical issues (in my case over breaking movie news vs. studio and talent reps). The Post is a tribute to them too.

Much of the cinematography is looking up at the characters. For the reporters and editors, it’s hero worship. For the naysayers, it’s the forces of oppression looming over us.

The press room opening the package of Pentagon documents is The Post’s moment of Spielbergian wonder. It’s as big as Elliott opening the shed door or Indy holding the Staff of Ra.

Steven Spielberg, Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks - The Post

I was not even born yet when this story took place, but were it not for the single decision of Kay Graham, I could have grown up in a completely different life. Because she had faith in her paper, the truth came out. Because The Washington Post gained the credibility of breaking the story, they could continue to publish and employ Woodward and Bernstein.

What if she’d played it safe? What if cooperating with the Times injunction let the Pentagon Papers get suppressed? What if no one felt safe blowing the whistle on the President and what if Nixon finished out his presidency, paving the way for more corruption?

Of course, other bad things happened in the ‘80s, but the press was empowered to report on them too. I’m thinking, if Nixon had stayed, Vietnam would have continued and who knows what else he had planned for us.

Things may look bad. They may even get worse. Just remember, every decision can matter. Make the right decision like Kay Graham did.

The Post opens in select theaters December 22 and everywhere in 2018.

The Post Review

19 Jan 2018

115 minutes

The Washington Post and the US government have previous. Famously. It is, after all, the paper that brought down a presidency — its months-long investigation into a break-in at the Watergate Hotel forcing Nixon into a no-win ‘resign or be impeached’ quandary. (He resigned.) But that’s not the only run-in it’s had — before Watergate, there were the ‘Pentagon Papers’.

First, the history lesson: commissioned by JFK and LBJ’s Secretary Of Defense Robert McNamara, the Papers were a 7,000-page report on the United States’ involvement in Vietnam between 1945 and 1967. The basic finding being the government knew they couldn’t win, but kept sending troops rather than admit defeat. With the war claiming nearly 60,000 American lives, that revelation was a pretty big deal. And, when the papers got hold of the documents, they wanted to publish stories. Nixon’s government, unsurprisingly, was less keen.

On its own considerable merits, The Post is first class.

The Post (retitled ‘ The Papers ’ during production, but since renamed back) is the story of The Washington Post ’s role in reporting on the leaked study, with particular emphasis on the roles of owner and publisher Kay Graham (Meryl Streep) and executive editor Ben Bradlee (Tom Hanks). She’s trying to secure the paper’s future by launching on the stock exchange, so needs to keep the bankers happy. He’s a news guy — he believes it’s his duty to publish, even if it means jail time.

The back and forth between these two acting heavyweights, and the subtleties of their differing stances as they wrestle with the magnitude of their decision, is where the film comes alive. It’s Streep who gets more with which to work. Graham was the United States’ first female newspaper publisher, a job she hadn’t asked for, but one she was landed with after her husband’s death left her in charge of the family business. And she’s often lost in a male-dominated world that gives her little respect: spoken over in meetings, bullied by those around her, but trying to do the right thing — by the paper, the American public, and by her friends. One of whom happens to be one of the men in the firing line — Robert McNamara (Bruce Greenwood). It’s just she’s not clear exactly what the right thing to do is. What good is publishing if the paper loses funding and goes under? Will the story put American troops in danger? But what about holding the government accountable for its deceit?

We have been here before, of course. In many ways — not least actually in the Post’s newsroom for All The President’s Men (Bradlee then played by Jason Robards). And so much of it plays out as you’d expect — with news conferences, phone calls to sources and sudden breaks in the story that come at just the right moment to propel the plot forward. It’s in comparison with similar films that The Post suffers. It has a decent story, Hanks and Streep are two compelling leads, and Spielberg is laughably over-qualified to direct it, but it’s neither as thrilling as All The President’s Men, nor does it have the emotional heft of Spotlight . But there’s no shame coming second best to those two titans of the genre. On its own considerable merits, The Post is first class.

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IMAGES

‘What If’ movie review:
[MOVIE REVIEW] The Post recounts monumental case for freedom of the
Film review: The Post
‘The Past’ movie review
‘Capital’ movie review
The Post is the true story of The Washington Post’s decision to publish

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