Media
Movie Renter's Guide - September, 2009
- Written by John E. Johnson, Jr.
- Published on 21 September 2009
"State of Play" (Blu-ray) - Reviewed by John Johnson
Synopsis
Reporter for the Washington Globe, Cal McAffrey (Crowe), investigates the death of a young woman, Sonia Baker (Maria Thayer), who worked as an aid for Senator Stephen Collins (Affleck). Sonia's death is labeled as a suicide, but Cal is suspicious that it may have been murder.
Senator Collins is involved in a controversy over the Defense Department outsourcing procedures, and Cal suspects that the senator may be responsible for her death.
Cal enlists the help of a newly hired reporter, Della Frye (McAdams), while the Editor, Cameron Lynne (Mirren) thinks that a more seasoned reporter should be working on such an important story with Cal.
They uncover a sex scandal and misuse of funds (hundreds of millions of dollars), and of course, there are those in high places who will do anything to keep the truth from being published.
Â
Specifications
- Universal
- 2009, Color, Rated PG-13, 2 Hr 8 min
- Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
- 1080p
- Codec: Not Specified
- English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio
- Starring Ben Affleck, Russell Crowe, Helen Mirren, Jason Bateman, Rachel McAdams, Jeff Daniels, Harry J. Lennix
- Directed by Kevin Macdonald
- Rating
- Entertainment:
- Video:
- Audio:
- Extras:
- Violence: Yes
- Sex: Mild
- Language: Mild
Commentary
The film is based on a British TV mini-series, and although it is an interesting story, I think they have condensed too much into the slightly longer than 2 hours of movie play time.
Technical
The image is not very sharp, and there could have been more use of the surrounds.
Extras
These include Deleted Scenes, The Making Of, and BD Live.
