State of Play

State of Play recontextualizes a 2003 BBC TV series into a contemporary American setting.  Russel Crowe and Rachel McAdams play two reporters trying to discover the truth behind a murder that might be connected to the contention between an idealistic senator (Ben Affleck) and a corporation responsible for supplying mercenaries to the U.S. government.    Mercenary activity in Iraq and Afghanistan is a spicy enough topic for a political thriller but the film's drama centers more around the rules of reporting and the tension between America's societal institutions than the kinds of thrills one would expect from one of the Bourne films.  Our heroes find themselves at odds with the competing interests of the police, military, congress and even their own newspaper.  The film follows in the tradition of more refined political thrillers like "All the President's Men" and "Breach".  There are more boardroom shouting matches than gunfights.  The film manages to keep a decent amount of intrigue but leaving the murder unsolved until the very end is like dangling a carrot out in front of a horse making the 2-hour runtime feel like an unnecessarily long haul for the final payoff.  

In a thriller like this, actors are little more than placeholders and with the exception of an entertainingly sleazy Jason Bateman, the cast wisely goes no further than that.  Ben Affleck and Rachel McAdams play things close to the belt and Russel Crowe fits right into his role.  There's something to be said for an actor who is best known for epic parts like a Roman gladiator, a schizophrenic mathematician and an 18th Century ship captain, who is just as good at portraying normal American citizens (no small task for a native Aussie).  He's not the flashiest actor in the world but his understatement is his strength.  

State of Play  is cliché, but not boring.  Government thrillers rarely try to shoot the moon with contemporary relevance or emotional depth.  It's good enough to keep the audience guessing and provide a few thrills in a realistic environment.  The problem with State of Play is that it doesn't take the time to construct a solid infrastructure of subplots to adequately support its final conclusion.  The unexpected finale makes an otherwise good film feel slightly careless.  The final plot twist comes so out of left field it would make any attentive viewer groan.  In my view it's better to run the risk of predictability in the interest of a sensible outcome than to ensuring a surprise ending by using improbable leaps of logic.  Still, the film is not bad, and if you can keep your brain from being too offended by the ending, then it is easy to admit that the film is entertaining, though not much else.