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Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams

Handsome, unflappable U.S. Congressman Stephen Collins is the future of his political party: an honorable appointee who serves as the chairman of a committee overseeing defense spending. All eyes are ...( read more  read more... )upon the rising star to be his party's contender for the upcoming presidential race. Until his research assistant/mistress is brutally murdered and buried secrets come tumbling out.

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71% liked it

110,107 ratings

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84% liked it

201 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 57 min.

Directed by: Kevin Macdonald

Release Date: April 17, 2009

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DVD Release Date: September 1, 2009

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Flixster Reviews (7,248)

  • AgentLexi2132
    November 23, 2009
    AgentLexi2132
    ''You're just seeking the truth. You're a truth seeker. You can't help it, that is just who you are.''

    A team of investigative reporters work alongside a police detective to try to solve the murder of a congressman's mistress.

    Russell Crowe: Cal McAffrey

    Many in...( read more)vestigative thrillers focus on detectives digging around for the answers, but State of Play chooses to center around a complex story focused on by a newspaper. Cut a long story short, the forces and pressures motivating a reporter are not altogether the same as a lawful detective, which makes for a much more unique plot with characters an audience can view as more like themselves. A detective must identify a suspect, or catch a murderer is doing their job; a journalist who puts the pieces together himself in the pursuit of truth, is a hero on an entirely new level.

    Oscar winner(2000, Gladiator)Russell Crowe stars in one of his certainly unique roles; partaking as a seasoned investigative reporter named Cal McAffrey. Crowe somehow more easily portrays Americans than any Australian or British actor working in Hollywood and he brings a light-hearted spirit to his serious role. His character finds himself in a dangerous place when his personal friendships with a congressman and his wife (Ben Affleck, Robin Wright Penn) come at odds with his job when news breaks that the congressman was having an affair with a girl who recently died in a DC subway accident. McAffrey first tries to protect his friend, but when he sees trends leading to conspiracy, his professional instincts take hold of his obssesive nature.

    Cameron Lynne: Well, I happen to like miss Della Frye... and yes, I did send her down there to winkle something out of you. She's hungry, she's cheap and she churns up copy every hour.
    Cal McAffrey: Yeah, I now... I'm overfed, I'm too expensive and I take way too long.

    State of Play brags a diverse but star laden cast. Crowe is the dependable star vehicle, Ben Affleck the sometimes under-rated acting talent, and Rachel McAdams makes a triumphant return to the screen as a young journalist/blogger who assists Crowe. Also appearing in the film are (Oscar Winner 2006 The Queen)Helen Mirren as the editor, Jeff Daniels as fellow politician to Affleck and even Jason Bateman makes a cameo. All of them are talented and have proved so in many different genres, but never have they been together to make a thrilling puzzle of politics and journalism.

    It's also the first experiment in the genre for the director, Kevin Macdonald (The Last King of Scotland) Macdonald keeps this film slick and exciting, generally refusing to use a tripod but not distracting us with shaky camera-work either. He mixes lots of close detail shots with scene setters that tell the story at a provocative angle. There are numerous albeit typical thriller movie conventions used; but he makes it his own; He's a director certainly worth keeping an eye on.

    Credit must also go to an incredibly well-assembled writing team. Although based on a BBC mini-series of the same name, State of Play boasts Michael Clayton creator and penner of the Bourne series Tony Gilroy for the drama and action, Shattered Glass creator Billy Ray for the journalism expertise and Matthew Michael Carnahan (Lions for Lambs, The Kindgom) for the political/military end. It's amazing to see how that all plays together so nicely with so many reputable writers. Some of the twists might be more on the extreme side, but it's mostly convincing and exciting the whole way through.

    State of Play hooks you and keeps you guessing. It tries to keep the characters intimate and worth caring about while also making sure the story picks up velocity. Subplots occasionally get in the way (McAffrey's personal connection to Wright Penn's character among them) but you become pretty easily invested in what's going on and are frightened when what seemed like a nice mystery suddenly gets serious. This is a thriller that is smart and quick and never blows itself out of proportion. It holds its ground and it does so with much talent.

    Lastly, the film questions the necessary extent of hard edged reporting, but also revels in its necessity. Watergate is alluded to as a building where a couple key companies are located. The connection is purposeful; we're supposed to see the scandal as a fictional modern recreation of Watergate in terms of how it's reported and uncovered. While films in the vein of All the King's Men praised the work of journalists, Play is too stubborn to give them full attention and glory, bringing into the discussion the idea of selling papers and not waiting too long to get all the facts or how the Internet/blog-sphere twists the news in various ways; for sales and profits disregarding the truth if necessary. It might not be at the front of your mind while enjoying State of Play, but it sets it above the many over baked detective thrillers out there any day.

    Stephen Collins: I thought you didn't call them yet?
    Cal McAffrey: I lied.
  • gor41
    November 15, 2009
    gor41
    Slick and professional but feels very dated. A powerhouse cast go through the motions but I felt it had too much of the original's feel and it didn't really embrace modern developments like blogging.
  • ceWEBrity
    November 3, 2009
    ceWEBrity
    A fun, engaging and expertly-made thriller that'll evaporate from your higher thought processes as soon as you're done with it. You couldn't exactly call State of Play ambitious, but it's intelligently written and directed, and understands that thematic depth and action are not m...( read more)utually exclusive. The cast is on point, with even the dramatically limited Ben Affleck working perfectly in his role, and Russell Crowe gives far more effort to this "competent schlub" role than he did in Body of Lies. Hollywood needs more movies like this.
  • her69eyes
    October 28, 2009
    her69eyes
    "State of Play" is not subtle: be kind to your fellow newspaper. Forget the juicy blog entries - let the news be kept to the journalists who'll go above and beyond. It's a noble message, indeed, with the recent recession in newspaper sales, and as a love-letter to print it's pret...( read more)ty successful. But it's incredibly dense plot, adapted from a BBC series almost three times it's length, leaves no time to say much else.

    When the chief researcher of congressman Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck) turns up dead, the initial assumption is that she committed suicide. But wait, what's this - she and Collins had been having an affair? Cue Cal McAffrey (Russell Crowe) from the Washington Globe, along with his affable sidekick, blogger Della Frye (Rachel McAdams). A conspiracy unfolds involving Blackwater, errr, "PointCorp", a defense contractor essentially attempting to create a monopoly and thus privatizing United States security.

    The script of "State of Play" was penned by three screenwriters: Matthew Michael Carnahan ("Lions for Lambs"), Billy Ray ("Breach"), and Tony Gilroy ("Michael Clayton"). Adapting a six hour BBC series into a two hour film is no easy task, but they make a valiant effort - it's coherent, consistently intelligent, and often exciting. What I suspect the BBC version has over this one, however, is it's characters. Because the plot is so thorough, we never get to know anybody on the screen - I never saw Cal McAffrey, instead I saw scruffy Russell Crowe, and all I got out of Rachel McAdams' perky blogger was that McAdams has lovely eyes. As many twists and turns as the script gives us, the characters are surprisingly one-note and, well, rather dull.

    I very much liked director Kevin Macdonald's 2006 effort, "The Last King of Scotland", but his latest is simply serviceable. It's a bit cheap, the sort of film where the investigative journalist, you know, investigates the shit out of some conspiracies. McAffrey ties up loose ends without seemingly any effort - there's not much downtime between each mystery, it's rather a series of episodes in which Nancy Drew and her chubby sidekick crack some cases. The film also features the shamelessly familiar development in which the ace newspaper journalist realizes something, runs out of his office, and shouts his own take on "stop the presses!" without explaining his findings.

    "State of Play" is a disposable sort of thriller, a film with an abundance of intelligence but little behind the suave dialogue. The performers are all game, but there's not enough on the page to make them believable three-dimensional people. That being said, however, I was consistently entertained - it's a bit hokey and implausible, but there's just enough talent on display to warrant a rental.
  • MovieGeek13
    October 12, 2009
    MovieGeek13
    State of Play is a rather smart thriller ruined by a stupid ending. As is the case with so many thrillers nowadays, there seems to be this need to have twist upon twist upon twist, It's not enough to have one twist anymore. The film has to go int one direction, turn into anoth...( read more)er, and then another. Then, by the end, the final twist negates everything we just watched, stripping the film of all its dramatic power. Instead, we're left feeling confused and cheated.
    Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams, Helen Mirren, and a unjustly uncredited Jeff Daniels all shine with solid performances. State of Play is definitely an actor's piece. It's also directed nicely, moving along at a swift place where yyou're never once bored. There are some truly memorable scenes. It's a shame that the film as a whole won't resonate with you once the credits roll.
  • nolan612
    December 4, 2009
    nolan612
    Fantastic plot executed flawlessly by a talented cast. Best movie I have seen in quite awhile.
  • PattyCsU
    December 4, 2009
    PattyCsU
    A very entertaining corporate conspiracy movie. Ben Affleck was actually not terrible.
  • JasonDennis91786
    December 2, 2009
    JasonDennis91786
    stellar except for one ludicrous scene in a parking garage. some would also say this is a film with one too many twists.
  • rajanaufal2
    December 2, 2009
    rajanaufal2
    Extremely smart, very good film, with maybe some little forgivable plot holes due to the overcomplex plot. I didn't really like Ben Affleck in this one, I mean Rachel McAdams looked more adapt with her role. It's really clear that Mr. Gilroy has something to do here. The guy's b...( read more)een there on all complexities that Hollywood's bringing, and I can really link this with duplicity eventhough there's absolutely nothing in common but the storytelling and its twists. Now I repeat it is a good film, but I didn't really enjoy it, though I always like to have my brain working, but I just wasn't happy working it this time.
  • jeffsmyth
    November 29, 2009
    jeffsmyth
    Surprised! Russell Crowe & Ben Affleck both put in a very good performance. The old dog vs the young dog and the hotshot politician all tangled up in a who-dun-it. There's an amazing twist at the end that I didn't see coming. I am recommending this movie to others.

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Critic Reviews

April 17, 2009
Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle

It's a film in a hurry. In the scant minutes between plot twists, we get treated to bite-size nuggets of character development and a few juicy nibbles of acting from a cast almost universally committe... full review

April 17, 2009
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

State of Play does get a little creaky in its last third -- at that point it needs to be more streamlined, more concise. But Macdonald and the screenwriters manage to weave their ideas through a sturd... full review

April 17, 2009
Pete Hammond, Hollywood.com

Explosive political thriller with a top-notch cast keeps you in its grip all the way. Russell Crowe's best performance since "A Beautiful Mind". full review

April 17, 2009
A.O. Scott, The New York Times

The chance to explore the swiftly changing culture of Web-age journalism is one of several intriguing possibilities that State of Play squanders. full review

April 16, 2009
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

State of Play keeps the twists coming. full review

April 16, 2009
Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times

A busy thriller that moves between the worlds of newspapers and politics, Kevin Macdonald's State of Play zips along smoothly. full review

April 16, 2009
Claudia Puig, USA Today

Though it is a well-crafted political thriller, State of Play may actually have more to say about the beleaguered state of print journalism than about governmental shenanigans. full review

April 16, 2009
Colin Covert, The Minneapolis Star Tribune

A solidly constructed thriller that recalls the paranoid conspiracies of the 1970s. full review

April 16, 2009
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

A smart, ingenious thriller set in the halls of Congress and the city room of a newspaper not unlike the Washington Post. full review

April 15, 2009
Armond White, The New York Press

If instances of dishonesty, cover-ups and heroic loners seem at all surprising, then you haven't watched TV in the past 30 years -- or the BBC series where State of Play originated. full review

View more State of Play reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments

  • welice93
    March 16, 2009
    welice93
    Oscar® winner Russell Crowe leads an all-star cast in a blistering thriller about a rising congressman and an investigative journalist embroiled in an case of seemingly unrelated, brutal murders. Crowe plays D.C. reporter Cal McAffrey, whose street smarts lead him to untangle a mystery of murder and collusion among some of the nation's most promising political and corporate figures in "State of Play," from acclaimed director Kevin Macdonald ("The Last King of Scotland").

    Handsome, unflappable U.S. Congressman Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck) is the future of his political party: an honorable appointee who serves as the chairman of a committee overseeing defense spending. All eyes are upon the rising star to be his party's contender for the upcoming presidential race. Until his research assistant/mistress is brutally murdered and buried secrets come tumbling out.

    McAffrey has the dubious fortune of both an old friendship with Collins and a ruthless editor, Cameron (Oscar® winner Helen Mirren), who has assigned him to investigate. As he and partner Della (Rachel McAdams) try to uncover the killer's identity, McAffrey steps into a cover-up that threatens to shake the nation's power structures. And in a town of spin-doctors and wealthy politicos, he will discover one truth: when billions are at stake, no one's integrity, love or life is ever safe.

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State of Play Trivia

  • Before being renowned for his work on the musical score for the movie "Enemy of the State", what band did Trevor Rabin play guitars for?  Answer »
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