The Post

January 2018 

The Post

Spielberg, Steven, Hannah, Liz, and Josh Singer. The Post. Twentieth Century Fox, 2017.

When a government conspiracy is uncovered by the New York Times, the Editor of the Washington Post does everything he can to find leaked government documents so he can expose the truth as well, but when the New York times faces criminal charges the owner of the Washington Post must decide what is more important: being able to keep her paper alive or allowing the American people to know the truth about their government. 

Adding a whole other layer to the struggle is the fact that the owner of the Washing Post in the 70’s was a woman. Kay Graham was  beautifully represented by Meryl Streep, the issue of a woman being the publisher of a major newspaper in the 1970’s was not the main thrust of the movie, but very clearly coloured the film from beginning to end. I came into the movie expecting Streep to be the hard and ruthless business woman she was in “the Devil Wears Prada” - the type of woman who you expect to have a power position, but instead she was a gentle and elegant woman, who seemed more concerned for the future of her family than her company. Her character in the film was a beautiful representation of a woman who is comfortable with her femininity and getting more and more comfortable with her position in power. It was beautiful to see her become increasingly bold and confident in her ability to lead and believe in her own convictions. 

I found this film as dynamic and engaging as it was timely. In an era where media is increasingly being sold to the highest bidder and created to tell people what they want to hear, this film was a powerful reminder of what the role of media has been, and what it can be for a democratic society. “The Post” is a powerful reminder for me of the importance of art to highlight issues in our culture and to show people that there is a better way.