Bombshell (2019)

 This was a good film, starring basically ever single white person in Hollywood. 

Beginning just as the 2016 Presidential campaign kicks into gear, with Trump shockingly pulling ahead of the pack, FOX news anchorwoman, Megyn Kelly (Charlize Theron) confronts him on the issue of how he treats women. This is just the beginning of her long descent on Fox News. 

It is also the story of disgruntled Gretchen Carlson (Nicole Kidman) who is upset that she has a show in an undesirable timeslot. So when she's fired, she's prepared and sues the CEO Roger Ailes (an unrecognizable John Lithgow) personally and slowly but surely other people, women come forward. Megyn is reluctant to do so even though it happened to her. Newcomer Kayla (the brilliant Margot Robbie) is also reluctant, loving FOX news and wanting to be on TV but scared that she would be ruined and her secret would be revealed, that she slept with a woman. 

But tons come forward Megyn urges them to do so even as her popularity dwindles and finally after an independent investigation comes forward, she goes and talks to the lawyers but never answers if her refusal truly affected her career. And Gretchen opts to settle out of court, but Ailes is removed as he certainly should have been. Gretchen was the smartest of all, she recorded their conversations managing to even leave his wife, Beth (Connie Britton) stunned. 

Still, the ending leaves me chilled. While Fox paid out the victims $50 million but they paid out more in severance paid to Bill O'Reilly (Kevin Dorff) and Ailes. That being said, the women won, at least this battle. 

While there is a giant cast of characters but the printed introductions help vastly, and the performances are brilliant, Theron, Kidman and Robbie all deliver great work. And the screenplay is tight. And while the environment is disgusting, this film captures the true newsroom feel. Grade: A-

Side Notes:

-Pay attention to the packed supporting cast: Jennifer Morrison, Rob Delaney, Kate McKinnon, Allison Janney, Malcolm McDowell, Richard Kind, Ahna O'Reilly, Eve Hewson, Mark Duplass, Holland Taylor and Lennon Parham. Yeah, it's a cast packed with talent. 

-It is true that having nice legs are a requirement.

-I can't believe that Ailes needed to make Kayla stand to determined that she had good legs, I would think it would be obvious.