The Post
The principled stand of the press in the face of political power—in this case, that of the Washington Post against the Nixon administration trying to bury the truth about the Vietnam War—makes a rousing tale. Thanks to the strength of that story, THE POST survives the Spielberg treatment, whose direction is always competent but too often heavy-handed, laden with swelling John Williams chords and other parlor tricks. Tom Hanks being Tom Hanks (instead of veteran Post executive editor Ben Bradlee) doesn’t help, but Meryl Streep captures publisher Katharine Graham’s transformation from gender-expectation-burdened uncertainty to rock of the First Amendment beautifully. If nothing else, THE POST is a desperately needed antidote to the free-press-maligning, “fake news!”-screeching liars in high places who threaten to undermine one of the pillars of our society. —YSM