Scheduled for theatrical release in NYC and LA on June 27th, Peter
Askin’s “Trumbo” is based on the stage play by the famous blacklistee’s
son Christopher Trumbo. Dalton Trumbo’s struggle against the witch hunt
would be compelling enough in itself, but the film has a more general
appeal as a study of one of the most complex and interesting
personalities to have ever worked in Hollywood.
As a long time critic of the generally crappy state of Hollywood movies
today, I have pinned the blame on a general decline in screenwriting,
which I blame on the dumbing down effect of television on our culture.
As movies become more and more like television shows, the race to the
bottom accelerates. After I’ve seen a Judd Apatow film, I get the
distinct impression that he never read a book after graduating college.
By contrast, Dalton Trumbo was a man of letters and in a distinctly old
fashion way, a letter writer. Like the 19th century novelists whose
letters matched their public work in intelligence and creativity, Trumbo
was one our great letter writers. “Trumbo” is structured around a series
of dramatic readings of Trumbo’s letters, with a number of more
enlightened actors taking turns, from Michael Douglas to David
Strathairn. Both of these actors are in their element. Douglas is a
long-time partisan of left-liberal causes, while Strathairn obviously
became familiar with the witch-hunt during the filming of “Goodbye and
Good Luck”. Playing Edward R. Murrow, assumed the role of one of the few
powerful figures in media who was willing to stand up to McCarthy.
full: http://louisproyect.wordpress.com/2008/05/08/trumbo/
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