Director: Antonio Campos
Writer: Craig Shilowich (Screenplay)
Starring: Rebecca Hall, Michael C Hall, Tracy Letts, Maria Dizzia, J Smith-Cameron, Timothy Simons, Kim Shaw
Plot: The story of Christine Chubbuck, a 1970s TV reporter struggling with depression and professional frustrations as she tries to advance her career.
Tagline – In keeping with Channel 40’s policy of bringing you the latest in ‘blood and guts’, and in living color, you are going to see another first… Christine.
Runtime: 1 Hour 59 Minutes
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Powerful Lead Performance
Story: Christine starts as we enter the 1970s television studio, where Christine Chubbuck (Hall) works, she keeps her stories to her determination on how she wants things to be and is eager to get to the next stage of her career. She is happy to question decisions and has a crush on the lead anchor George (Hall).
With the struggles coming through strong, we do see how Christine pushes to get her stories air time, but it will always be her last story that people will remember her for.
Thoughts on Christine
Characters – Christine is an ambitious reporter that is always looking to forward her career, she can become difficult to work with, because of her search for perfection and by taking on the newest stories, her own personal problems with start to come through. George is the lead anchor on the network, he is filled with confidence believing he is the star of the show. Michael is the station manager that deals with Christine’s ideas while trying to put the stations on the map with higher ratings.
Performances – Rebecca Hall gives her best performance in this film, she is the most interesting part of the film as we see how she handles the problems she is going through. The rest of the cast are good and know not to take control of the scenes because the story is about Christine, not them.
Story – The story here follows Christine, her career in television reporting, her personal problems both physical and mental ones which drove her to the shocking moment she will be remembered for. The problem with the storytelling process is slow because unless you know the outcome, you will feel like nothing much is happening, because we are only interested in learning Christine’s story and that is by seeing the motivation which lead to the end.
Biopic – The film follows Christine’s life in the news business and how her personal life affected her own decision as she couldn’t handle the pressure of everyday life.
Settings – The settings bring us into the correct time era, the 1970s which shows how the lives of these characters would be operating in.
Scene of the Movie – The therapy.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The impact just doesn’t hit hard enough with the slow build.
Final Thoughts – This is one of the most shocking moments in television history, it shows the pressure people can place on themselves to become the stars they are today.
Overall: Nice, but not spectacular biopic.
Rating
