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War doesn't make sense and it'll never do. We, as earthling, have never stopped doing it because we're against change and recidivism is in our culture. Conflicts aren't just about two countries nuking each other but also about people arguing in a destructive way. There're a lot of political motivations about it but the core is just about our pride, our everlasting need to show to other people that we got the balls and a penis. This is nosense. Most of the people in this world knew and know about it but they've never been listened by politicians who were engaged in increasing their power and showing it off, without doing ther job: the common good. Today we are experiencing it with a pandemic, which should've brought together to fight a common enemy, and yesterday, and I'm talking only about the previous century, were the World Wars, the Cold War, the Vietnamese War, the Korean War and the Islamic Terrorism.
This movie is about that. People who stood up for what's right and got clogged by the government. It's a movie about other times but, in fact, we're going through it right now.
PLOT
"The story of 7 people on trial stemming from various charges surrounding the uprising at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois" or "A bunch of guys tries to do the right thing but an old judge isn't able to do his job properly".
SCRIPT
This is a movie which grows on you. At first the characters aren't fleshed out well and the events are told in a systematic and boring way. All change during the second act where the Chicago Seven are deeply explored and their motivation become front and center. The movie divides the characters in two fronts, the opposition and the defendants, by making both likeable, even though is clear that the screenwriter don't like the opposition. The defendants are also splitted in four factions, the students, the Hippies, the Black Panthers and the lawyers. The least explored faction are the Black Panthers, who get sidelined to avoid being a movie just about racism. There aren't character archs because it wanted to stick to reality and our reality is made of unchangeable people. Nonetheless the trial is compelling because, even though you'll take the Chicago Seven side, the movie gives a lot of material to address your position and doubt about it. Also, I think that this motion picture is extremely professional in representing different ideologies and ways of life without stereotyping anyone. Aaron Sorkin, who is a renowned screenwriter, has delivered an outstanding job at representing a controversial fact, a thing which could've been easily misfired today.
Script: 8/10
ACTING
There's an high level of acting here, delivered from a cast of young and veteran actors. I want to underline the outstanding performances of Jeremy Strong, Mark Rylance, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Eddie Redmayne. The last one is who elevates the movie and make it believable. He plays his character with great charisma and emphasis, especially in most of the scenes in the third act, where there's a heated confrontation with Rylance's character. I've expected more from Sascha Baron Cohen, because his character seemed a more empathic iteration of Borat, but he did a good job. The supporting cast does a good job but Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who is a very talented actor isn't used very well, even though his character works.
Acting: 8/10
PHOTOGRAPHY
It's very well shooted, with some peaks and some lows. The court's scenes are a bit stale but everything else, from the riots to the conventions, is good looking. The light is flat most of the time but it doesn't hurt because sometimes it tries to break the mold and it's very pleasing. It's not enough to say that it's an outstanding movie in terms of photography but it isn't bad.
Photography: 6/10
EDITING
It's used in a pretty effective way, by synching it with the soundtrack rythm and the scene's tension. It becomes so dynamic when stress rises, without catching a break until the stress explodes. It becomes more common toward the last act and it revives your attention. There's a mild use of slow motions wich is usually used during the aftermath of a riot, to make it more dramatic. I liked the wide angle used to shot the court's outdoor to emphasize the government's stance against the Seven and the use of archive's scenes, which are alternated with movie shots during lively sections.
Editing: 8/10
SPECIAL EFFECTS
There isn't a lot to talk about here. Most of the movie is practical and I think that only some shots were cgied to make the set looks more realistic for the period the movie is set in. That's nothing amazing but it's enough.
Special Effects: 6/10
SOUNDTRACK
Most of the time it's quiet and it doesn't improve the experience. This is interesting because when it's needed it rises and overwhelms you with a pounding rythm that fits the scene's levity and keep you on your seat. This thing explain why most of the time is in the background: to enhance the importance of some scenes and give you goosebumps. It isn't a great soundtrack but it's extremely effective and that has to be acknowledged.
Soundtrack: 7/10
COSTUMES
The clothes fits the characters and the period but they don't bring anything interesting to the plot. This section is acceptable in it's simplicity.
Costumes: 6/10
CONCLUSION
Script: 8/10
Acting: 8/10
Photography: 6/10
Editing: 8/10
Special Effects: 6/10
Soundtrack: 7/10
Costumes: 6/10
AVERAGE: 7
It's a good movie with good ideas, a great cast and an inventive editing. It lacks a bit of bite in the first half but it grows a lot during the second one. I advise you to see it because it poses very good questions and it's objective, for the most part. We need more movies like that today because our people need to be more conscious about the politcs sins and what we can do to change it, to make a better world. Now more than ever we have to come together and think as a united people, as earthling, to get past wars and pandemics, to evolve into something better, something beautiful.
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Director: Aaron Sorkin
Screenplay: Aaron Sorkin
Cast: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Sacha Baron Cohen, Daniel Flaherty, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Michael Keaton, Frank Langella, John Carroll Lynch, Eddie Redmayne, Noah Robbins, Mark Rylance, Alex Sharp, Jeremy Strong
Soundtrack: Daniel Pemberton
Cinematography: Phedon Papamichael
Running Time: 130 minutes
Budget: $35 million
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