State of Play

Forgettable film with hollow characters and wasted potential

Easily understandable why this film was completely forgotten earlier this year: it was merely a tale. There was barely little, if anything, to the character of Cal McAffrey (Russell Crowe). We know he is the Main Character because he has the biggest head on the poster, but as far as the story goes, we don't learn a single thing about him, thus making it impossible to empathize with him or with the story's problems. There is a minor relationship with Della Frye (Rachel McAdams) that could have been developed more, but her character would need to be further fleshed out as well. Beyond that, the cool thump-thump sound of the helicopters does not cover up for some pretty bad casting (Jason Bateman?!). Best forgotten.

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