https://www.youtube.com/embed/n0dZ_2ICpJE
Tinsel Town loves to navel-gaze and present its tastemakers as the smartest, most important chroniclers of cultural artifacts in America. They love a message movie. And you know what? Great! Because when Hollywood goes to pat itself on the back, big stars turn out to pitch in. Trumbo tells the story of McCarthy-era screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, who was blacklisted from the industry when we were hunting communists like witches. Trumbo wrote A Guy Named Joe and the Oscar-nominated Kitty Foyle before being submarined by politics. He continued to write under pseudonyms for years after being ostracized and was pretty much better than ever before, winning two Academy Awards for The Brave One and, after his death, for Roman Holiday. That Oscar was originally given to Ian McLellan Hunter, whose name was on the script despite the work being done by Trumbo. Byran Cranston stars as the titular character, which is enough to get us excited, but this supporting cast is awards bait all the way: Helen Mirren, Elle Fanning, Diane Lane, John Goodman, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Louis CK, Alan Tudyk, and Michael Stuhlbarg. So this one definitely has us stroking our beards with curiosity.1
Pause at: 0:57. Mid-century costume design for daaaaaays. Young Kirk Douglas at 2:32. John Goodman doesn't want to hear your nonsense at 2:04!
Essential Quote: "The radical may fight with the purity of Jesus. But the rich guy wins with the cunning of Satan."—Dalton Trumbo (Bryan Cranston)
1Correction 7:15 EDT 08/12/2015 — An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified the writer of the film as Jay Roach. The screenwriter is John McNamara. Jay Roach is the director.
