Moie #1339 "Snowden" -- Knowing this is an Oliver Stone film, I realize he has an agenda, and therefore, many people will feel the film is biased. Yet, more so than his other films, I felt he presented fact after fact, as we watch incredulously how someone as smart as Snowden gets acclimated to his new job at NSA, and then in time becomes disillusioned once he discovers just how much our government can know about each and every one of us (while, incidentally, telling us the opposite. Snowden is presented as a quiet, almost anti-social (possibly on the autistic spectrum) nerdy intellect, esp. when it comes to writing computer programs. Yet, there's a girl who really likes him and puts up with his trips to other countries for months to work for NSA --- and that humanizes him, well, that and his scruples. The film points out time and time again that he isn't in it for the money or fame, and he isn't afraid to stick up for what he thinks is right, even though he might jeopardize his position at work (unlike many of his colleagues). He is so upset with the Bush government that he quits, and he comes back to work when President Obama comes in, only to find out things haven't changed. Very disillusioned and feeling to blame for a program that he wrote being abused by our government, he decides to be a whistleblower --- that is the frame of the film -- the beginning and ending of that infamous interview that became the academy award-winning "Citizenfour" documentary (which I now want to see!) Melissa Leo plays that filmmaker, and it's another memorable acting job for her, and for Rhys Ifans. As for Joseph Gordon- Leavitt, he continues to impress me with his gutsy choices on films that seem out of his comfort zone -- In this one, he changes the way he speaks and moves so that he looks and talks more like the Snowden we've seen in the news or documentary. Whether you think he's a hero, or a traitor, the film works well to sustain interest in a story that I didn't think would. There's lots of intrigue that worked for me. Also, I could follow it pretty easily, another worry I had going into the movie. In fact, I found his story very fascinating, and the film did what a good film should --- it made me want to learn more on the subject, so I recommend it. and boy, is it topical right now! I give it 4 out of 5 stars!
"SNOWDEN" 2 hours, and 14 mins 2016 R (for language mostly)
In 2013, CIA technical expert Edward Snowden stunned the world by revealing a stolen trove of classified U.S. government documents. This Oliver Stone-helmed drama tells the story of the bold theft that exposed secret NSA mass surveillance programs.
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