The Fifth Estate

 Hello everyone, I'm the critic you love to hate (possibly) or missed in the past few months. People call me TheCinemaChick and I love movies. Now, I know I have not been around for a while, but I needed some time off. I will not explain what led to me needing this break as it is personal and my own business. This is not to sound rude, it's just that it's not a great thing and I really just don't want to discuss it with anyone.


Well, I have returned with a decent film to discuss. I know people will be flocking to the theaters to see either “Gravity”, which I hear is very intense, and “Captain Philips” which is based on a true story about a man whose boat was hijacked by Somalian pirates. While I'm sure both are excellent in their own right, I chose to see a movie that not many people were drawn towards. I decided to check out “The Fifth Estate”, starring Benedict Cumberbatch.


For those who do not know, this is a “semi autobiographical” film about the founder of WikiLeaks, the website that leaked important information online. I say “semi autobiographical” because I do not know how truthful this is. The sources always remained anonymous, but Julian Assange, the man behind the screen, chose to publish some very controversial military cables that endangered many lives. The files were classified, leaked by a mentally unstable man (Bradley Manning at the time, now Chelsea Manning) who was at the time involved in the military. Several newspapers also published this information, however, they chose to redact it. For those who don't know, redact is just a fancy way to say it was revised. The newspapers chose not to release names so the people would be safe, but Assange did not change the names.


Now, I have chosen not to investigate Julian Assange or his life because I believe that would create a bias between my personal opinions and the film itself. Politics and film can mix, as there are plenty movies like that out there. However, I believe that my own personal views should not distract me from the content of a film. I have to put what I feel aside. Needless to say, I found “The Fifth Estate to be quite fascinating. This information was completely new to me. I have never used WikiLeaks personally and I did not know who Julian Assange even was until this film.


While most of the focus is on Assange, there is someone else I should mention. He has a partner, Daniel who helps him get everything going in the beginning. Daniel is a good man, who just wants to make the world a better place. He believes in Julian's cause almost blindly, so he follows. As the film goes on, he realizes that his work has not been entirely honest. People have died because of the things that were posted online, which makes him have second thoughts. The dividing moment comes when Julian refuses to redact the military documents. Daniel chooses to sabotage Julian so that they can help more people. However, the information is released anyway.


To be honest, the content and dialogue didn't exactly thrill me, which is ironic since this is being billed as a thriller. At best, I would call it a cyber drama. The main focus is on the information technology, along with privacy and how much is too much. It also shows how power, when not shared equally, can cause a kingdom to crumble. One brilliant moment in the film comes when there is a confrontation between Julian and Daniel and Julian suspends Daniel on the spot. It becomes incredibly clear to both the character and the audience that ego has become a huge problem in the relationship. Ties are severed and Assange goes on.


Overall, I was not entirely impressed with “The Fifth Estate”. The dialogue did not fare well and there were times when it was nothing but long monologues from Julian about his past or his brilliance; granted, they did provide an insight to his mindset. As the film progresses, Daniel practically becomes a background character until the climax. Julian begins dominating the plot and screen. The longer this goes on, the more crazed, almost obsessed he becomes with uncovering the truth. At the end, there is a printed epilogue that explains what happened to Assange: from his sexual misconduct charges to his political asylum in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. There are also several scenes of Cumberbatch reenacting actual interviews from Assange. I had not known about these interviews and thought they were part of the script. The final ten minutes of “The Fifth Estate” were cinematic perfection with the mixing of text and dialogue.


Another misstep is the overuse of montages and cut aways. Many of the montages were very rapid and did not give me a chance to understand what I was supposed to be seeing. For instance, the opening credits double as a history in communication. It starts with hieroglyphs, working its way to the printed word to typewriters to modern email. However, it all goes so fast that there are several things missed. If you were not paying close attention, like me, it was easy to miss something. Another issue came when Julian and Daniel would be working together and there were bits of programming code or an online chat floating on screen, blocking the actor's face. It didn't seem necessary at all. We, the audience, already know what's going on, so why does it need to be projected like that? Also, there would be scenes where Daniel and Julian would be in a nonexistent office and I did not understand the relevance of this until later in the film. It is a metaphor for Wikileaks itself.


While the visuals and overall feel did not impress me, I will say this: the two main actors, Daniel Buhr and Benedict Cumberbatch were flawless. Their acting was highly impressive to say the least. As I said, I chose not to research Julian Assange, but I did watch a brief clip of an interview he did, just to hear his voice and see what he looks like. Cumberbatch copied the accent and slight lips and it truly sounded identical to Assange. The two men even look similar. Daniel Buhr is an emotional driving force. He shows wonderful emotions, ranging the gambit from pure joy to utter frustration. There was no need to say how he felt as every change in emotion was apparent on his face. Sadly, none of the other characters were as memorable, even though there were some great names involved in the movie. David Thewlis (The Harry Potter series) and Peter Capaldi (Torchwood) worked with the British newspaper but are not very noticeable. Thewlis gets a decent amount of screen time but Capaldi barely gets any.


This film has not been considered a success so far. It's barely made $2,000,000 in its opening weekend. It has received a wide variety of critiques, ranging from negative to praise. It seems most people are mixed on this. Some say its melodramatic while others consider it a nihilistic thriller. And if you don't know what nihilistic means, it's basically a rejection of law and institutions. While I still do not consider it a thriller, I will agree with calling it nihilistic. It is not like many of the films I have seen this year. It is not in chronological order. The film starts at the end, the immediately jumps two years back and starts from there until it reaches the beginning scene once more.


While I don't see “The Fifth Estate” as the next Best Picture Oscar winner, I do foresee both Buhr and Cumberbatch getting much more praise and recognition for their portrayals of Daniel Berg and Julian Assange. They are undeniably the driving force of the film and create a wonderful atmosphere that goes from friendly, almost brotherly, to tense and heartless. Both men have earned a greater appreciation from me and I look forward to seeing more from both actors in the future.


I would not discourage anyone from seeing this film. It's a great adaptation of two books, which can be difficult to do. Staying true to one book is hard enough but managing to use two is a feat that was done well. Cumberbatch, though completely recognizable, embodies Assange. The run time is a little over two hours and sometimes it does feel like its longer but its more than worth it. The climax when Assange realizes he's been hacked and Berg is relieved that he has stopped his once friend is power packed. I must go back to the epilogues, which, for me, where the best part. It's a chance for Cumberbatch to really show off his acting skills, He has been a busy man, starring in “The Hobbit” trilogy, “Star Trek Into Darkness” and returning to the set of “Sherlock”. I do not see his career slowing down at all in the near future.



I'm TheCinemaChick and I have a golden ticket...somewhere.