My Report on “The Report”

“The Report” is writer/director Scott Z. Burns' epic and sweeping film that illustrates “Enhanced Interrogation Techniques” (EIT) don’t work, and that the United States was wrong to use them in the interrogation of possible suspects in the 9/11 attack.

Adam Driver as Daniel Jones in "The Report."

Immediately following 9/11, the CIA used EIT on captured supposed terrorists in order to force them to give information about terrorist networks and future attacks on the United States. After years of brutalizing detainees, the Senate Intelligence Committee began a long investigation into the methods used by the CIA to obtain information. Heading the investigation was tenacious Senate staffer Daniel Jones who, at every turn, was thwarted by roadblocks put up by the CIA and the White House in his quest for information, documents, and access to witnesses. Miraculously, Jones was able to compile a 7,000 page document that detailed the torture and inhumane treatment of prisoners held by the United States. Getting this information out proved to be an almost Herculean task as President Barack Obama (and the previous Bush administration), the CIA, and the Senate themselves wanted to hide the truth from the American public.

“The Report” was extremely high on my list of the films I wanted to see at Sundance. It has an amazing cast led by Adam Driver as Daniel Jones and Annette Bening as Diane Feinstein, and the story is extremely compelling. Just days ago it was purchased by Amazon for $14 million dollars and will be released later this year. But unlike other great political movies like “All the President’s Men,” “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington,” “The Manchurian Candidate,” or “JFK,” this one lacked the tension, suspense, and drive of others that have dealt with individuals fighting corruption in Washington, D.C. The only person who really gave a memorable performance was Adam Driver, but it wasn’t enough to carry the whole movie which overall felt flat and dull – kind of amazing because this is a film about the revelation of one of our country’s greatest and most horrific scandals. Instead of being dramatic, the movie felt more like “a report” of what happened as it plodded along. It was certainly informative, but the dialogue and delivery throughout the entire movie remained fairly monotonic.

There’s always a difficulty in portraying real people – especially real people who are still alive and in the public sphere. I thought that Christian Bale’s performance of Dick Cheney in “Vice” was masterful. He captured the mannerisms, cadence of voice, and the very essence of Cheney, and yet I never felt like he was “acting.” Bale’s performance appeared effortless. I didn’t feel this way about Annette Bening’s performance as Diane Feinstein in “The Report.” Her portrayal felt forced and superficial, almost a caricature of Feinstein’s physicality and voice. It just didn’t feel or look natural. The look may have also had something to do with helmet-like the wig she was wearing throughout the movie, which was really distracting.

I’m sure that “The Report” is going to be hailed as a triumph by most reporters in the news media because of the way they are portrayed. In some ways, it’s almost a redemption film for them. The whistle blowers are the good guys here, and they are fighting against the behemoth beast that is the U.S. government in a seriously dark swamp. It covers important subject matter, and is a story that needs to be told. Daniel Jones is an American hero and patriot, and deserves to be recognized for his remarkable achievements in the face of incredible resistance from both political parties. But on the whole, this film just wasn’t as "engaging" and "gripping" as I felt it should have been. It's educational. It's just a bit too sprawling.

"The Report" Rose Wagner Theater January 30, 2019

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