The 2017 bombshell report from the New York Times that brought down mega-producer Harvey Weinstein was always going to be a tricky story to tell when the inevitable movie adaptation came along. Most people do not want to see his grotesque and repulsive behavior on the big screen. So how do you handle one of the most important moments in modern journalism that started the #MeToo movement? Give it the Spotlight treatment.
Director Maria Schrader tackles the tough subject matter and the story of the two women who helped bring about the downfall of Weinstein. Zoe Kazan and Carey Mulligan bring their A-game as reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey, but can’t quite salvage the by-the-numbers film. She Said falls short of greatness due to the auto-pilot directing of Schrader and her insistence on matter-of-fact storytelling.
Let me preface this: this is an important film. The subject matter is crucial and the two reporters should be hailed as nothing more than the heroes they are. It just didn’t have to be so beige. The sets are evenly lit, the backgrounds meaningless and the camera rarely falls out of eye level. This story could have benefitted from a little more emotion in the camera work and in the directing. Instead, the weight of the film falls upon the two leads who are required to do some heavy lifting with their lightweight roles.
Kazan has never been better than she is here as Jodi. A woman whose determination is palpable thanks to her performance. She’s usually been cast aside to mediocre rom-coms and being the love interest so it was so refreshing to see her talent truly shine here. Mulligan is great too as Megan, she is usually dependable and does a great job of making her character feel worn and lived in. She makes Megan human, and feel like someone you would actually see on the street. The two really help push the film past most of its flaws and keep you captivated.
Addressing the Spotlight-sized elephant in the room, this film is not on that level or the level of All the President’s Men. This is a film that borrows many of the same beats from Spotlight but fails to know what to do with them. There is even an opening scene that feels similar to Spotlight in that it comes back into play later. Schrader misses the point of the journalism movie, it is not about the shocking crimes or terrible reveals. It’s not about the journalists. It is about journalism. The undying and unflinching movement to uncover the truth and shine a light on it, no matter how terrible or difficult it might be.
She Said focuses on the actions of Weinstein and not the difficulty in trying to take him down and what Jodi and Megan went through. Sure, there is drama added in, (cars that follow them, and unrelated sub-plots of cancer and motherhood) but it never goes anywhere. It’s all just superfluous to the main plot. Drama for the sake of drama. There are glimpses of the toll that this investigation takes on the two but it rarely cracks the surface level, but thanks to great performances from Kazan and Mulligan they are able to elevate the film.
There are too many beats in the film that feel familiar. If you’ve seen any movie about journalism, you’ve seen these moments. Parts of the film feel lifted from other movies and She Said begins to seem like plagiarism. There are great moments still, and those moments shine but too often we are left with a sense of “been there, seen that.”
Schrader does care deeply about the subject matter, and her attention to detail shows. (Much to the detriment of the film.) She meticulously lays out the case against Weinstein and the painstaking steps it took to finally bring him down. The film sometimes plays out as more of a factual retelling than a drama, which is great for the case but makes for some slow moments in the movie. This is what leads to an overall pacing issue too. There is too much fluff and makes the over two-hour runtime feel a lot longer than it really is.
3.5/5
She Said
Directed by Maria Schrader
Written by Rebecca Lenkiewicz
Starring Zoe Kazan, Carey Mulligan, Patrica Clarkson, and Andre Braugher
In Theaters Everywhere November 18th