Read Mixed User Reviews for Bombshell (2019)

5

JPKDec 15, 2019

Meh, I’ve Seen Worse
Though it has good intentions, Bombshell falls short unfortunately.

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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6

JLuis_001Dec 21, 2019

It wasn't a bombshell, it was more like a scratch.

Don't get the wrong idea, it wasn't bad but at all times it felt like a measured and tamed story.

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

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4

tropicAcesDec 13, 2019

This thing wants to be The Big Short and Vice so bad. Not only does it share the same writer and cinematographer, but it features Elvis-impersonator level appearances of real-world figures and fourth-wall breaking narration. But none of itThis thing wants to be The Big Short and Vice so bad. Not only does it share the same writer and cinematographer, but it features Elvis-impersonator level appearances of real-world figures and fourth-wall breaking narration. But none of it works, and you never feel the scale or weight of what these women are doing.… Expand

4 of 8 users found this helpful44

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5

MarkHReviewsDec 24, 2019

It’s nearly impossible to address a topic like sexual harassment while avoiding taking a point of view. By trying to maintain a fair and balanced perspective, “Bombshell” remains frustratingly superficial on a topic that deserves much deeperIt’s nearly impossible to address a topic like sexual harassment while avoiding taking a point of view. By trying to maintain a fair and balanced perspective, “Bombshell” remains frustratingly superficial on a topic that deserves much deeper exploration.

This film examines the end of the Roger Ailes era at Fox News, a period during which anchor Gretchen Carlson sued the network for sexual harassment when she was fired. After the suit was announced, the film depicts on-air-personality Megyn Kelly’s internal debate on whether to go public about her own brushes with Ailes.

Director Jay Roach (“Trumbo,” the Austin Powers series) and Writer Charles Randolph (“The Big Short”) have created a film with an uneven, confusing tone. In “The Big Short,” Randolph’s script relied heavily on voiceovers, actors speaking directly to the camera and excellent use of humor (Margot Robbie in a bubble bath explaining sub-prime mortgages is one of the funniest vignettes of the past few years). Here, deploying the same techniques just seems out of place - dressing an actor to look like Geraldo Rivera is guaranteed to cause a brief smile, but it’s a cheap laugh that’s simply distracting. When addressing a subject like sexual harassment, so weighted with profound personal emotional cost, the superficial jokes and visual humor just seem painfully out of place.

The core cast contributes almost entirely to whatever success the film does achieve. As central character Megyn Kelly, Charlize Theron (with the help of facial prostheses) does an eerie imitation of her real-life counterpart’s appearance, gait and style of speaking. As Gretchen Carlson, Nicole Kidman relies less on visual similarity but still effectively conveys the essence of her character. As Kayla, who represents a composite of real-life female employees at Fox, Margot Robbie is compelling as she struggles with the compromises she’s willing to make to “move to the head of the line” and become an on-air reporter. Robbie offers the most powerful scene of the film as she second-guesses with considerable anguish the choices she’s made. John Lithgow (as Ailes) is powerfully effective as a self-absorbed bully.

The creative team has an amazing supporting cast at its disposal - Kate McKinnon as a Fox employee who’s a closeted gay Democrat, Allison Janney, Alice Eve, Rob Delaney, Richard Kind (Rudy Giuliani) and Mark Duplass, among others. It’s no small irony that two males, Delaney and Duplass, are the most sympathetic, thoughtful and appealing people in the film.

“Bombshell” shows several major flaws and raises several major questions. First, the screenplay totally fails to explore how, if at all, the inward-looking culture at Fox New contributed uniquely to an environment where serial sexual harassment could thrive. Instead, the script settles for portraying facts from the public record with no real attempt at context or interpretation. Second, the central characters are generally unsympathetic. Megyn Kelly, in particular, appears so driven by her own ambition that she seems oblivious to the situations of women around her. Her early comment “I’m not a feminist. I’m a lawyer.” offers only the laziest of explanations. Third, there is no serious exploration of why women, informally, didn’t help other women avoid Ailes’ predations. For me, one of the most intriguing but inscrutable characters in the film is Holland Taylor (she was Charlie Sheen’s mother on “Two and a Half Men,” more notably Ann Richards in the one-woman-show “Ann” on Broadway) in a totally uncredited role. In multiple scenes, you see Taylor smiling knowingly as she ushers the latest young woman in a short skirt into Ailes’ inner sanctum, fully aware of what is in store once the door closes and locks. Finally, totally separate from the Fox News context, is this bland approach to harassment what’s always going to happen when the #MeToo movement is written, directed and packaged by men?

If you want a deeper understanding of Roger Ailes and his legacy, read the carefully-documented “The Loudest Voice in the Room,” by Gabriel Sherman. “Bombshell,” on the other hand, is a superficial glossing-over of an essential topic and an insular culture that deserve a much more thorough examination.… Expand

2 of 4 users found this helpful22

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4

Bill_NyeDec 21, 2019

All this movie wants to be is the big short or vice. The problem is that the story does not provide a movie enough material. Charlize Theron had a pretty good performance. But the biggest problem was that the story happened 3 years ago. IfAll this movie wants to be is the big short or vice. The problem is that the story does not provide a movie enough material. Charlize Theron had a pretty good performance. But the biggest problem was that the story happened 3 years ago. If the film was not rushed and released 5 or 10 years from now. Then we would be seeing an effective movie that delivers a great message… Expand

2 of 4 users found this helpful22

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4

Naz34Dec 16, 2019

This film is not even half as good as Vice or The Report or Richard Jewell.

The people in this film are depicted as one-dimensional caricatures and stereotypes. I do not support Fox News but the way they are being generalized and profiled isThis film is not even half as good as Vice or The Report or Richard Jewell.

The people in this film are depicted as one-dimensional caricatures and stereotypes. I do not support Fox News but the way they are being generalized and profiled is laughable & demeaning. The film is a bit too on the nose and doesn't have much depth. There are some comedic aspects and Charlize, Nicole give interesting performances but the film overall isn't Oscar-worthy.… Expand

2 of 5 users found this helpful23

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6

donelsonJan 17, 2020

Even more shallow than the news reports during the times covered. The performances are good, but the dialogue is pretty shallow throughout most of the movie. It's entertaining, but mostly superficial, probably to avoid angering the grayEven more shallow than the news reports during the times covered. The performances are good, but the dialogue is pretty shallow throughout most of the movie. It's entertaining, but mostly superficial, probably to avoid angering the gray eminence himself, Murdoch.… Expand

1 of 4 users found this helpful13

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6

TVJerryDec 23, 2019

Pretty much everyone knows the story behind Fox New president Roger Ailes and his serial harrassment of potential reporters and anchors at the network. This film depicts the plight of 3 of those women (played by Charlize Theron, Nicole KidmanPretty much everyone knows the story behind Fox New president Roger Ailes and his serial harrassment of potential reporters and anchors at the network. This film depicts the plight of 3 of those women (played by Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman and Margot Robbie), as they struggle with exposing their own stories. While the performances are compelling (including John Lithgow's creepy Ailes), the drama is relentless in its sinister, fearful atmosphere. Director Jay Roach continually uses close-ups to probe the paranoia. While he details the story with noteworthy developments, the pace lags, the situations feel repetitive and the drama never builds to a gratifying climax. Like so many recent films about historical events (Dark Waters & Richard Jewell for example), this one is interesting without possessing the riveting impact the subject deserves.… Expand

1 of 5 users found this helpful14

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5

cag345Jan 12, 2020

The movie is not at the level of the actors who participate in it, limiting their performances. It is a sensitive issue to discuss, but the film fails to realize all its ambition and does not delve deeply into it. Theron and Robbie are fineThe movie is not at the level of the actors who participate in it, limiting their performances. It is a sensitive issue to discuss, but the film fails to realize all its ambition and does not delve deeply into it. Theron and Robbie are fine in the film (although I am not so sure that they are so good as to justify their future Oscar nominations), but here the disappointment is Kidman, who is supposed to be the centerpiece of the film, and ends up being only a small chapter in history.

The movie has not really hit the public, and it is fully understood as there are other productions that better explain what happened and with greater emotional intelligence (see the Loudest voice), leaving this film and its intentions in a simple bahhhh.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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5

JoeCoolFeb 27, 2020

This movie wants to be like Vice, and Vice wasn't great. Unfortunately there's not a lot going on that keeps you entertained or even interesting. Charlize Theron was worth watching, but that's about it. Voicing anti-Trump sentiments might beThis movie wants to be like Vice, and Vice wasn't great. Unfortunately there's not a lot going on that keeps you entertained or even interesting. Charlize Theron was worth watching, but that's about it. Voicing anti-Trump sentiments might be entertaining for a while, but it gets old pretty fast. The sexual harassement part just never really builds up enough momentum to leave a mark.… Expand

0 of 3 users found this helpful03

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5

Stream2BigScreeJan 28, 2020

Bombshell Goes Bust

The Stream: Nothing new that you didn’t already know or suspect. The Big Screen: Charlize Theron’s uncanny resemblance to Megyn Kelly is a remarkable feat. The Final Bill: A star-studded TV movie on the big screen.Bombshell Goes Bust

The Stream: Nothing new that you didn’t already know or suspect.

The Big Screen: Charlize Theron’s uncanny resemblance to Megyn Kelly is a remarkable feat.

The Final Bill: A star-studded TV movie on the big screen.

-Trip Fontaine

In the colloquial sense, people and things can be described as a bombshell. Catastrophic news can be a bombshell; or, an attractive woman may be characterized as a bombshell. Most likely, you have heard the term “blonde bombshell” – get it? Whatever. Okay, Jay Roach’s Bombshell plays with those connotations in alluding to the revelation of rampant sexual harassment at Fox News as well as the numerous, mostly blonde employees of the network. The titular bombshell was reported in 2016 when Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson exposes then CEO Roger Ailes and the toxic culture at the network, so the history is very recent. I would suspect anyone going to see Bombshell will mostly be curious about the star-studded cast because they would already know the basics of the story. There really isn’t much more to it.

Nicole Kidman plays a fierce and steadfast, Gretchen Carlson. She’s tired of the “boy’s club” antics of her co-anchors and the disregard she is shown by Roger Ailes, who is played by John Lithgow under layers of makeup. I think Kidman is made up to resemble Carlson, and it’s a good job because she looks like herself but not unrecognizable. Carlson is out on a limb when she goes against Ailes by exposing him and Fox News, but she needs allies.

The remainder of the film is basically grappling with whether any other women related to Fox News will tell their stories. The primary focus is on Megyn Kelly played by Charlize Theron and a composite character, Kayla Pospisil, played by Margot Robbie. Theron is unrecognizable. She looks so much like Megyn Kelly and sounds like her too that it is mindboggling. Her performance is really good although it doesn’t seem like there’s much at stake for Kelly. She seems pretty insulated from any potential fallout whether she supports Carlson or not. Robbie is very good as well. Because her character is fictionalized, she doesn’t come with the baggage of Megyn Kelly or Gretchen Carlson and gets to be the ambitious, young wide-eyed fool who wants to work at Fox News and naively trusts these people she idolizes. Robbie gets to be tender and devastating in her own right.

It is hard to be spoiler free on Bombshell because we lived these events so recently or you can just go to your trusty internet search engine and read the articles for yourself. I ask, does the film justify its existence? The cast does a good job. There are a lot of cameos throughout of the other Fox News personalities – Geraldo, Judge Jeanine, Greta, etc. The make-up is great – just look at Theron in one clip. The film as a whole feels like the other political retellings that have come out as of late, mostly on HBO, Recount, Game Change and last year’s theatrical release, Vice, but there’s really no deeper point of view about any of these characters or the situation. I do not know that this movie is necessary now – aside from depicting that women working in the conservative news field endured their #MeToo moments as well.

The only real reason to see Bombshell is to watch Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman and Margot Robbie in these performances. They are all great, but the first teaser for Bombshell (the 3 women in the elevator and that suspenseful music) was the most impactful part of the film. If you really want to know what happened, read the articles from only 3 years ago. Save the viewing of the movie to when it premieres on HBO next year or whenever, if you must see it.… Expand

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

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6

RalfbergsFeb 27, 2021

Movie was told interestingly, but when you think about it the plot is very predictable, given that you know about the real events so movie doesn't really show much more about it. Not only that, some parts are just made up or imagined byMovie was told interestingly, but when you think about it the plot is very predictable, given that you know about the real events so movie doesn't really show much more about it. Not only that, some parts are just made up or imagined by scenarists as they didnt consult actual Megyn Kelly about movie etc. So yeah, it is good that such movie exists about the topic and brings it to forefront but I think as a movie itself isn't the greatest… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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4

Ejdjski1234Jul 2, 2020

I found this movie very boring and just felt like it exists to hate on the male gender

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5

Mauro_LanariApr 20, 2020

(Mauro Lanari)
Kayla Pospisil falls asleep drunk with Jess Carr and, when they wake up, discovers that her colleague of "Fox News" is a liberal with two posters of Hillary Clinton in the apartment. The film is set in 2016, while the sexgate(Mauro Lanari)
Kayla Pospisil falls asleep drunk with Jess Carr and, when they wake up, discovers that her colleague of "Fox News" is a liberal with two posters of Hillary Clinton in the apartment. The film is set in 2016, while the sexgate between President Bill and Monica Lewinsky is from 1998. The reason why the #MeToo Movement only went viral with Harvey Weinstein in 2017 is not at all clear to me: were social networks and their hashtags necessary? That said, "Bombshell" has a confused, convulsive, I dare say "hysterical" rhythm, which tends to cloud the careeristic complicity of the victims.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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