Hollywood has long used the real-life stories of iconic people who were instrumental to pivotal moments in history, but once in awhile they address the stories of the smaller, lesser known folk who made their voices heard by blowing the lid off a cover-up, a criminal act, or a political scandal, that they may not have walked away from without their own personal scathing in the process.
Those deemed by society as "whistleblowers" are often viewed as heroic crusaders, but some are also seen as opportunists, seeking their own gain through fame rather than understanding the full repercussions of their actions. The movie industry has often tinkered with these stories, and revealed the moral ambiguity and challenges of making the choice to be heard. The following films are prime examples of how these stories walk a thin line of risk versus reward.
All The President's Men: The Scandal That Ended A Presidency
One of the most significant political scandals in American history is without a doubt the Watergate scandal. The break-in at the infamous location that served as the Democratic National Part headquarters during the lead-up to the 1972 election ignited a fire of suspicion at the Washington Post newspaper, and it forced two crack reporters Carl Bernstein (Dustin Hoffman) and Bob Woodward (Robert Redford) to investigate further.
What they uncovered were ties leading all the way to the Republican party and President Richard Nixon's involvement in the crime. The film's protagonists had to face a very heavy decision that they knew would change and possibly damage the country into a vulnerable position with the President in danger of being impeached for his actions. They decided to run the story behind a firm belief of publishing the truth (a journalist's code to live by) no matter the consequences. In the aftermath, Nixon avoided prosecution by stepping down and resigning.
As a viewer, you could look at what Woodward, Bernstein, and The Washington Post did as the justifiable action of outing a crook who was in an undeserving position of power and abusing his authority. But it's easy to forget that a journalist is, by nature, ambitious to always further their careers on the potential story of the century, even if it means the downfall of others. Scandals sell papers. So were Woodward and Bernstein just doing their jobs, or doing the right thing at the possible expense of their credibility (which was sure to come under fire long after)? This is what the audience ponders over in All The President's Men.
Serpico: Breaking A Bond Of Brotherhood
Another scandal of a different kind erupted in the early 1970's when a straight-arrow New York cop named Serpico (Al Pacino) who threatened to reveal the amount of corruption within the police force after witnessing first-hand fellow officers extorting money from criminals. His unbreakable moral code and complaints to the higher authorities put him in a precarious position with his fellow blue-blooded comrades.
The story of Serpico is certainly more admirable as a justified whistleblower who is willing to take a firestorm of retaliation. His attitude and work ethic is the standard of what great cops should be like, but in a gritty world of temptation and abusive power he finds himself in the minority against a force that can bite back hard enough to destroy his life forever. As a viewer you can feel Pacino's inner conflict of risking death or disgrace over the corruption of his soul.
The Insider: A Cost Too High
In 1999, Director Michael Mann (Heat) brought forward the story of Jeff Wigand (Russell Crowe), who served as a research chemist for a large tobacco company. Wigand is sought out by a CBS reporter named Lowell Bergman (Al Pacino) to do an interview for a 60 Minutes expose on 'Big Tobacco', and is leaned on hard by his ex-employers to uphold his confidentiality agreement. The move gets Wigand's back up, and he agrees to the interview under the threat of arrest, intent on revealing secrets about the company's not-so moral designs with its product.
Wigand's life then comes apart at the seams, coming under personal and professional attack for his participation in the expose and CBS shelves the interview to avoid a potential lawsuit, leaving Wigand high and dry. The Insider painfully shows how sometimes the cost of telling the truth can take a tremendous toll on one's life. Wigand is completely discredited and his life is a shambles by film's end even though his intentions seemed noble. But were they noble?
Wigand avoids speaking to Bergman early on, and it isn't until the company makes a point of keeping him quiet that he decides not to be. Crowe plays it as a possible revenge game for being mistreated by his former employers even as he's shown loyalty. Then comes the question of whether or not he did the interview to seek his own fame and fortune for appearing courageous in front of the world? And was the repercussions to his life justified? The Insider handles this grey area quite well, and leaves it for the audience to decide.
Erin Brockovich & The Whistleblower: The Crusaders Take Action
2000's Erin Brockovich and 2010's The Whistleblower show two female crusaders who made it a mission to seek justice for atrocities that were covered up by big organizations. Brockovich (Julia Roberts) was a determined legal assistant that almost single handedly brought down a power supply company for polluting a city's water supply, while Whistleblower's Kathryn Bolkovac (a Nebraska cop) outed the United Nations for covering up a sex scandal she became aware of during her time as a peacekeeper in a post-war Bosnia.
The strength of these movies is that they perfectly show examples of women as resourceful fighters, who don't quit in the face of strong adversity. The two characters/people are activists in the truest sense, seeking no advancement for themselves, and are relentless at getting the results they want to ease the suffering of the victims. The stories and the films are meant as inspiring tales that the potential value of the fight outweighs the risks.
Where Will Hollywood Go Next?
Each of these films are all individually brilliant, with many of them gaining great critical accolade and award recognition both for performances and as cinematic masterpieces. But it's curious to ponder whose story will Hollywood go to next about someone who came forward to reveal information at great risk to their own welfare? Time will tell. But these are not tales that should simply be remembered. They should be immortalized.
Sources:
- Serpico. Dir. Syndey Lumet. Perf. Al Pacino, John Randolph. Paramount Pictures. 1972. Running Time: 130 mins.
- All The President's Men. Dir. Alan J. Pakula. Perf. Dustin Hoffman, Robert Redford. Warner Bros. 1976. Running Time: 138 mins.
- The Insider. Dir. Michael Mann. Perf. Russell Crowe, Al Pacino. Touchstone Pictures. 1999. Running Time: 157 mins.
- Erin Brockovich. Dir. Steven Soderbergh. Perf. Julia Roberts, Albert Finney. Universal Pictures. 2000. Running Time: 131 mins.
- The Whistleblower. Dir. Larysa Kondracki. Perf. Rachel Weisz, Monica Belucci. Samuel Goldwyn Films. 2010. Running Time: 112 mins.
Ryan Young - Ryan Young is a Film and Sports article/review writer, based in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario, Canada.
