When a congressional aide is killed, a Washington, D.C. journalist starts investigating the case involving the Representative, his old college friend.When a congressional aide is killed, a Washington, D.C. journalist starts investigating the case involving the Representative, his old college friend.When a congressional aide is killed, a Washington, D.C. journalist starts investigating the case involving the Representative, his old college friend.
- Awards
- 2 wins & 4 nominations
Robin Wright
- Anne Collins
- (as Robin Wright Penn)
Steve Park
- Chris Kawai
- (as Stephen Park)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe newspapers seen in the movie were printed on the presses of The Washington Post.
- GoofsIn the final scene of the printing montage at the end, the sign on the side of the truck says "Washington Post".
- Quotes
Della Frye: [referring to Foy] And why do you think he's gonna talk?
Hank: Because he's scared.
Della Frye: How do you know?
Cal McAffrey: Because I'm gonna scare him.
- Crazy creditsThe printing process of a newspaper is shown as the ending credits start to show up.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Screenwipe: Episode #5.3 (2008)
- SoundtracksThe Night Pat Murphy Died
(Traditional)
Arranged by Alan Doyle, Bob Hallett (as Robert Hallett), Séan McCann, Darrell Power
Performed by Great Big Sea
Courtesy of Sonic Entertainment Group and Warner Music Canada Co.
Featured review
Decent thriller, but missing something special
I liked STATE OF PLAY. It ticked all of the right boxes: solid direction, good, playing-against-type performances from most of the cast, unforeseen twists and some great set-pieces, including a ferocious encounter in an underground car park.
Do I think it's a truly great film? No, not by a long shot. It's inventive, and well-paced, and one of those films that stimulates the brain as well as the senses, but...I didn't find much emotion at the heart. A similar thriller like David Fincher's ZODIAC really grabbed me with its depiction of Jake Gyllenhaal's dedicated journalist, but there's little emotion at the core of STATE OF PLAY. It's too busy with the mystery stuff and the ending just left me cold.
Russell Crowe gives one of his most interesting performances to date as the long-haired, tubby journalist and the aforementioned scene in the underground car park sees him play isolated and frightened, a real counterpoint to his usual tough 'n' taciturn type performances. The rest of his obsessive-y type stuff has been previously done in American GANGSTER.
Ben Affleck is surprisingly good as the shady politician, and it's refreshing to see him playing a character with a bit more depth for a change. Speaking of depth, Rachel McAdams is the one weak link in the chain, completely out of hers, while Helen Mirren seems to be trying too hard to emulate Meryl Streep in THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA for the majority of her scenes.
Do I think it's a truly great film? No, not by a long shot. It's inventive, and well-paced, and one of those films that stimulates the brain as well as the senses, but...I didn't find much emotion at the heart. A similar thriller like David Fincher's ZODIAC really grabbed me with its depiction of Jake Gyllenhaal's dedicated journalist, but there's little emotion at the core of STATE OF PLAY. It's too busy with the mystery stuff and the ending just left me cold.
Russell Crowe gives one of his most interesting performances to date as the long-haired, tubby journalist and the aforementioned scene in the underground car park sees him play isolated and frightened, a real counterpoint to his usual tough 'n' taciturn type performances. The rest of his obsessive-y type stuff has been previously done in American GANGSTER.
Ben Affleck is surprisingly good as the shady politician, and it's refreshing to see him playing a character with a bit more depth for a change. Speaking of depth, Rachel McAdams is the one weak link in the chain, completely out of hers, while Helen Mirren seems to be trying too hard to emulate Meryl Streep in THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA for the majority of her scenes.
helpful•205
- Leofwine_draca
- Dec 9, 2012
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Languages
- Also known as
- Cuộc Chiến Cân Não
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $60,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $37,017,955
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $14,071,280
- Apr 19, 2009
- Gross worldwide
- $87,812,371
- Runtime2 hours 7 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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