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State of Play

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State of Play (2009)

April. 17,2009
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7.1
|
PG-13
| Thriller
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When a congressional aide is killed, a Washington, D.C. journalist starts investigating the case involving the Representative, his old college friend.

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Reviews

Redwarmin
2009/04/17

This movie is the proof that the world is becoming a sick and dumb place

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Teringer
2009/04/18

An Exercise In Nonsense

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Bumpy Chip
2009/04/19

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

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Paynbob
2009/04/20

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

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merelyaninnuendo
2009/04/21

State Of PlayThe first act is wasted upon introducing the characters and setting their sub-plots after which the analyzation of the investigation is chewed off way too much in its overlong second act that barely seeks attention until the last act arrives that flips one's whole opinion and expectations that they have been carrying around the whole feature. Kevin McDonald doesn't fail on executing the tension on the screen but the real culprit is the script that never had enough crisp to hold the audience for around 2 hours. Russell Crowe is decently good along with a great supporting cast like Rachel McAdams, Ben Affleck and Jason Bateman. State Of Play has a great cast and is in safe hands on terms of executing the words but unfortunately these words aren't intriguing enough to invest in it.

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KissEnglishPasto
2009/04/22

...........................................................from Pasto,Colombia...Via: L.A. CA., CALI, COLOMBIA....and ORLANDO, FL Tried to avoid having much in the way of expectations for STATE of PLAY, but it was hard to be oblivious to the all the general good buzz. Also, hard not to know beforehand that the cast is exceptional and that it's getting relatively high ratings and strong reviews. Still, other than that, didn't really want to find out any more! Watching a solid, well-done film like STATE, is like watching a good athlete or an outstanding performer…They all make it look SO EASY! Just take an interesting, dynamic story; convert that into a cohesive, believable sounding screenplay; do your casting well, so you get a cast that can breathe life into the characters; craft the music to heighten the mood/ambiance at hand; edit the scenes for maximum impact and always know where you're going and be sure you take the movie in the direction of your vision! Easy-Peasy…Japanesey! Those are some of STATE's pluses.Like any movie it did have some minuses. I'll try and go over both. A powerhouse cast, that doesn't disappoint: Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Helen Mirren, Rachel McAdams, Robin Wright Penn, Jason Bateman, and Jeff Daniels… WOW! Did the A-list want IN on this project, or what?!? Although Crowe does a fine job, he falls a little short of true excellence. A difficult task, attempting to shine when surrounded by ALL that talent! One surprise: Ben Affleck, not exactly on my favorite "actors" list, turns in a deviously devilish performance as the congressman who is keenly aware of his media image and how to protect it. But the big jaw-dropper here is Jason Bateman. His characterization fooled me completely! Had to wait for the credits to see who he was! His Uber- creepy-bottom-feeder-sleaze-ball was the film's real revelation! STATE falls down a bit because it is very light in the new and original Department. Still, it is a very well-crafted, entertaining movie! How's this for a chillingly ironic 10 year Date of authoring this review? SEP/11/11 -- 9* STARS....ENJOY/DISFRUTELA! Any comments, questions or observations, in English o en Español, are most welcome!

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hall895
2009/04/23

State of Play is a film which weaves a tangled web and then struggles mightily, and ultimately unsuccessfully, to untangle it. It's a political thriller in which an intrepid newspaper reporter, with the assistance of a cute blogger, tries to get to the heart of some nefarious conspiracy. But the reporter gets bogged down and the movie does too. The plot is quite convoluted which leads to both boredom and glaring plot holes. It's a story with twists, meant to keep you guessing. But by the end you may no longer be interested enough to be bothered to hazard a guess at what's really going on here.The story deals with PointCorp, a shadowy private defense contractor which is being investigated by Congress. It's Congressman Stephen Collins who is leading the investigation. We meet him just as he is delivered some crushing news: the woman who was his lead researcher has just been killed by a Washington Metro train. Looks like suicide but Collins doesn't believe it. He would certainly have some personal insight into the woman's frame of mind seeing as he was having an affair with her. Once that information becomes public Collins is enveloped in quite the scandal. This of course is not at all bad news for PointCorp. To try to get to the bottom of this Collins turns to old friend Cal McAffrey, investigative newspaper reporter. Cal is on the case but, much to his chagrin, he finds himself teamed up with perky young Della Frye, blogger from the newspaper's online operation. Suffice to say Cal doesn't have much respect for cutie-pie bloggers. Anyhow this odd couple works the story and the film begins to take numerous twists and turns as it moves to what is ultimately a rather disappointing end.A quite unkempt Russell Crowe plays Cal and Crowe provides a solid foundation for the film to build on. With the likes of Helen Mirren, Robin Wright and Jeff Daniels on board this was always going to be a well-acted movie. Rachel McAdams also does fine work in the role of young, naive Della. Ben Affleck, playing Collins, doesn't make for the most convincing congressman but he's not so bad that it really hurts the film. What does hurt the film is that the story just never works properly. It's all about a big conspiracy but there's never enough of a hook to make you really care about that conspiracy. And the film keeps piling on more and more information, so many different strands of the plot which need to tie together. It's all a bit too much. This is a story which desperately needs a big payoff but the ending is not nearly as smart as the filmmakers apparently thought it was. In a film which needs to be filled with suspense there really is very little of it. Honestly the subplot about the pressure on the reporters and their editor, what with the dying newspaper industry and all, seems more compelling than the big conspiracy that the film is actually about. There's a hint of an interesting story in this film but that story gets buried under the weight of the unwieldy plot. Some good performances, especially from Crowe who creates a very interesting character, but the performances are not enough to salvage the film.

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SnoopyStyle
2009/04/24

A druggie thief is gunned down in a dark tunnel along with a pizza delivery guy on a bicycle by a mysterious assassin with a suitcase. The delivery guy survives. Cal McAffrey (Russell Crowe) is a gruff cynical beat reporter checking out the story. Meanwhile a young female staff to congressman Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck) dies falling off the subway platform. Collins is assumed to have had an affair with that aide. Ambitious young writer Della Frye (Rachel McAdams) from the newspaper's online side wants to write something about Collins. McAffrey was Collins' college roommate. As Cal investigates, he uncovers a complicated corrupt Washington political system and a connection between the thief and the political aide.There are great actors being directed by the first rate Kevin Macdonald. There are all kinds of things being jammed into this. There is the newspaper world. There is the Washington political world. There is the military industrial complex. There is an assassin. There is personal history between the characters. It is a lot but Macdonald keeps it all understandable. Russell Crowe keeps the story moving with the attention on him. It's a firecracker thriller although it is a little long.

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