The Trial of the Chicago 7

Starring: Eddie Redmayne, Alex Sharp, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jeremy Strong, John Carroll Lynch, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Mark Rylance, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, J.C. MacKenzie, Frank Langella, Danny Flaherty, Noah Robbins, John Doman, Michael Keaton, Kelvin Harrison Jr.
Directed by: Aaron Sorkin
Rating: R
Genre: Drama, Thriller
2020

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Follows the trial of seven protestors arrested during the uprising at the 1968 Democratic National Convention.

Review:

Tim: In only his second directorial effort, Aaron Sorkin crafts a great movie. The Trial of the Chicago 7 truly is great- it's a fast-moving, entertaining, informative, hilarious movie. The banter and dialogue crackles when Sorkin's superb writing. There's a big cast and somehow, Sorkin gives them all enough space and interesting things to say. This is definitely a "Hollywood" movie, but it's one of the best films of the year.

Perhaps the biggest achievement here is that Sorkin crafts a 2 hour, 9 minute movie that feels effortless to watch. The movie holds your attention from beginning to end. It shows you multiple interesting characters. You almost want to strain your ears to catch every word of dialogue. It's a fast-moving film that tells a powerful story based on true events that feels uncomfortably relevant for 2020, while depicting events from 1968. I loved watching this film.

Sorkin's writing has long been master class. It's interesting to see that his directing is starting to catch up. I can't imagine this was an easy movie to create. He has a large ensemble cast, many moving parts, and yet he winds them all together into a compelling narrative. He tells this story about protests in 1968 that eerily resonates with the protests we've seen across America over the middle of 2020. Watching this movie is informative from a historical perspective, but it also helps you understand that while much has changed in the last 50 years, a frustrating amount has stayed the same. That translates into a truly powerful viewing experience.

The cast is excellent. I loved that Sorkin mostly stayed away from the biggest names in Hollywood. Eddie Redmayne tops the billing. He's a talented actor, but I've never really liked him. I liked his performance here. His strengths are leveraged and he makes a positive impact on the film. Sacha Baron Cohen was fantastic. He's able to leverage his unique strengths as a comedic actor, but also gets to showcase his dramatic skills as well. He emerges as one of the most memorable characters in the film. Jeremy Strong quietly gives a remarkable performance as well. He often feels like he's playing off the more boisterous Cohen, but he gets enough opportunities to do some truly excellent work on his own. Yahya Abdul-Mateen II adds a great supporting performance. It mostly consists of yelling and interrupting, but he makes a lasting impression. Mark Rylance's role cannot be overstated. In a cast of real characters, he gives a quiet, measured performance. That was so critical to the film. He grounds the movie with his performance and in a subtle way, delivers a stunning piece of work. I really liked seeing Joseph Gordon-Levitt here. His role is an interesting one and yet he's able to infuse the role with humanity and complexity. He was a joy to watch. John Caroll Lynch's presence is always welcome. He didn't get as much to do as some of the others, but he was effective. Frank Langella was masterful as the judge. It was such a critical role and he needed to create certain emotions in the audience. He does this quite well. I loved Michael Keaton's small role. He shows up at the perfect time in the movie and he was absolutely the right actor for this small but crucial role. When I think about the cast, I have to give Sorkin and the producers credit- the cast all get their moments to shine, and their diversity gives the movie this authentic complexity that was wonderful to watch.

I know I've mentioned the script, but I have to reiterate how funny it was. The dialogue was just amazing. I found myself continually laughing throughout the film. Sometimes these are big comedic moments, and sometimes they are small lines about the lifespan of a fruit fly. Sorkin infused so much humor into this movie that it was truly a joy to watch.

Now, while I loved this movie, it does have some issues. One is that it just feels like such a Hollywood movie. I know the film debuted on Netlix, but Sorkin took an event and a group of people and he "Hollywoodized" them. The real people weren't this funny, weren't this entertaining. The movie is so slick and stylish, it can draw so much attention to that aspect that you forget the substance. That never happens here (which is why it's a great movie), but it occasionally gets close. Sorkin crafted a truly entertaining movie, but to do so, he had to break away from reality some. I didn't love that.

Despite that, though, The Trial of the Chicago 7 is one of the bright spots of 2020. It's easily one of the best movies of the year. It's entertaining and hilarious, and a movie I would happily sit down and watch again.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 8



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