Good Night, and Good Luck - Classic Movie DVD | Award-Winning Political Drama | Perfect for Film Studies & History Buffs

First, if you are the type who wants action and fast pacing I can tell you up front that you are going to hate this movie. On the other hand, if you are the sort who revels in the smallest detail and loves nuance and texture to a story you will probably love this movie.On the surface this movie appears to be about Murrow versus McCarthy. That is only the vehicle to portray how broadcast news and editorial in particular began morphing into something completely different than it first started out. Change is inevitable.The real story is how networks at the time operated when it came to stories that Murrow was portrayed as covering. It was much slower moving and deliberate than it is today. More importantly, despite the opening speech by Murrow's character (verbatim from the original that Murrow himself delivered), he stretched some major rules of journalism. For one thing, as the storyline unfolds he starts to become a part of the story. That someone of his stature and integrity wandered into that grey zone can be seen as either casting off archaic rules or chipping away at journalistic integrity. I fall on the side of the latter opinion, but still have enormous respect for Murrow. Regardless of how you feel about the story and events, Murrow did wield significant influence and did alter the events in the McCarthy sphere.One scene put the different world and pace into sharp focus: the scene in which he is tele-interviewing Liberace. By today's standards it's slow and boring. However, if you use that scene as a guideline for 1950s America the pace at which the production of Murrow's show and the discussions about whether or not to proceed with McCarthy are put into context.Even the main storyline would have ended the same way had Murrow not clashed with McCarthy because the Senator from Wisconsin had already made powerful enemies. Plus his running loose with facts probably did more damage than good since the communists who had infiltrated and had the skills to do that damage had an opportunity to dig in and become invisible because of the spectacle of McCarthy's witch hunt. The irony is that some of the accusations such as Annie Lee Moss turned out to have merit, but McCarthy had lost so much of his credibility by then that he was powerless to move forward even if he had stronger evidence. And because of the witch hunt atmosphere and spectacle for every Annie Lee Moss who got away an innocent had their life destroyed.Here are some of the strong points of the movie and why I rated it so highly. Foremost, it is accurate. I did some fact checking and every scene, speech and broadcast depicted in the movie was spot on. There were some minor inaccuracies, but in the whole this is almost like a documentary with a healthy dose of drama and a back story.Cinematography is simply stunning. Artistically, this is a visual (and aural feast). I was so taken with the sound track that I purchased Good Night, Good Luck featuring Diane Reeves. Even the set designs were period correct (I grew up during that era.)George Clooney was a journalism major (and his father a journalist), so you can forgive his excessive focus on the show's production process and the behind-the-scenes back stories dealing with journalistic integrity. I love details, and this aspect few my appetite for them. It also slows this movie down, so if action is your thing you will probably nod out.There were some interesting devices, such as using only footage of McCarthy instead of casting an actor. The same goes for Annie Lee Moss and a few others. It gave a dimension of realism that a drama normally lacks (plus you are treated to their own words unedited.) Again, I was so taken by that and the realism it brought that this movie has become a favorite.Finally, this would make an excellent discussion film for journalism majors because it is the turning point - for better or worse.