Nothing But the Truth (2008)

• Year: 2008
• Released: 29 Jul 2009
• Country: United States
• Adwords: 2 wins & 2 nominations
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1073241/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/Nothing_But_the_Truth
• Metacritics: https://www.metacritic.com/movie/nothing-but-the-truth
• Available in: 1080p,
• Language: English
• MPA Rating: R
• Genre: Crime, Drama
• Runtime: 108 min
• Writer: Rod Lurie
• Director: Rod Lurie
• Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Matt Dillon, Vera Farmiga
• Keywords: prison, journalist, cia, assassination attempt, integrity,

	7.2/10
	64/100
	50% – Audience

Nothing But the Truth Storyline

Rachel Armstrong is trying to balance her life as wife to novelist Ray Armstrong and “soccer mom” to adolescent Timmy Armstrong against the want to advance her career as an investigative journalist at the national news desk of the Capital Sun-Times newspaper. Her name within the profession may become more renowned when her editor, Bonnie Benjamin, decides to print the latest explosive story on which she has been working and for which many predict she will win a Pulitzer Prize. The story is that Erica Van Doren, the wife of Ambassador Oscar Van Doren who has been critical of the current administration, is a covert CIA operative who investigated and found conclusive evidence that the Venezuelan government was not responsible for a recent assassination attempt on US President Lyman. Erica’s report was ignored by the White House, the US government which proceeded to bomb strategic Venezuelan sites in retaliation. Beyond exposing Erica’s role, the story is not meant to be critical of her or Ambassador Van Doren per se but rather the White House for their inappropriate and potentially illegal behavior, which the newspaper sees as being in the same league as something like Watergate. The coincidental part of the story is that the Van Dorens’ daughter Alison Van Doren is Timmy’s classmate, although Rachel doesn’t know the Van Doren parents personally and has only seen fellow soccer mom Erica in the past from afar in their respective volunteer work at the school. Although he OKs proceeding with the story, what makes the newspaper’s chief counsel Avril Aaronson nervous is that Rachel has not divulged to him or anyone else at the newspaper her primary source, although Rachel, Bonnie and her staff have verified the story through secondary sources. The issue is is that it is considered treasonous for government officials to have provided Rachel this type of information, and thus the story could be problematic if Rachel’s primary source is someone in the White House or within the CIA which is most likely the case. Although the story is meant to focus on the White House’s actions and behaviors, it instead results in the two women in the center being the targets. Many of Erica’s colleagues believe she knows who leaked the story to Rachel, she herself being under suspicion to support the views of her husband. The government, through the FBI which hires special prosecutor Patton Dubois, is determined for Rachel to reveal her source as a measure of national security, there being precedent in a 1972 case which ruled that national security trumps Rachel’s First Amendment right to protect her source. The newspaper in turn hires high powered lawyer Albert Burnside to fight Rachel’s case in front of a grand jury against Dubois. Rachel, who is as determined to keep her source a secret beyond the First Amendment issue as Dubois is as determined for her to reveal the source, may not be prepared for the consequences, which could be jail time for contempt for as long as she decides to hold out.

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Nothing But the Truth Movie Reviews

Vindictive government

At some future date in our history there is an assassination attempt on our president. That is used to justify a military intervention in Venezuela when it’s leaked to the press that they were behind the attempt.

Kate Beckinsale investigative reporter writes the story and in doing so outs her neighbor Vera Famigia as a CIA operative. That’s against the law and the government wants to know who her source is. But being the good journalist she is she won’t reveal. So it’s off to prison with her and that’s only the beginning of her problems.

The federal government is really vindictive in its persecution of her. They’ve even got a special prosecutor in Matt Dillon who is just devoted to her case alone. Talk about overkill. Dillon does very well in the part and never lets it slip into caricature. He genuinely believes in what he’s doing and never sees the implications that Beckinsale’s civil liberties lawyer Alan Alda does.

Unfortunately outing Famigia makes her a target too and tragically so. That only makes Dillon and our government redouble its efforts to make an example of Beckinsale. As for Beckinsale she’s wonderful in her part as unexpected hero who really sacrifices all for a free press.

We do in fact learn the original source of her story and all I can say is it is sublimely bizarre. I would love to have seen Matt Dillon try to prosecute the source.

Ripped from the headlines writing

After a Presidential assassination attempt, he orders an attack against Venezuela. Columnist Rachel Armstrong (Kate Beckinsale) writes that the President ignored CIA operative Erica Van Doren (Vera Farmiga) when ordering the attack. The media descends on Erica and her life is turned upside down. The government moves to force Rachel to name her secret source. She refuses and is jailed for contempt.

Of course, it’s a ripped-from-the-headlines kind of story. They make sure to say that this is fictional. Writer/director Rod Lurie does a reasonable job but this has a bit too much TV movie feel. Maybe he should have not copied so much from the headlines. There are big enough actors involved but it needs big cinematic flourishes. I won’t give any spoilers, but I do love the big reveal at the end.

The Misuse of Power

This is a most disturbing film. It’s about the government hanging people out to dry, even if they are upholding fundamental principles. The young woman is true to her calling. Unfortunately, those around her, from her employers to her lawyer to her husband to the prosecutor can’t quite grasp this kind of dedication. She is put in prison for not revealing her sources. She loses just about everything in the process. Unfortunately, she also runs into a prosecutor who begins to take her case personally. He is sadistic to the nth degree and she is truly powerless to save herself. It’s the Valerie Plame incident, although the disclaimers come right at the beginning. That is itself a bit of cowardice. It is then a series of efforts to get a judge to change in the face of federal pressure and post 9/11 events; in the face of Homeland Security. Quite a powerful effort.