September 11th 2001 was a day that the United States will never forget for many, many reasons (especially if you lost someone on that tragic day). What many people did not see in the aftermath of the attacks was what occurred within the United States Government as a result of those attacks. The CIA in particular had the most important role to play as they were given almost complete free reign (ignoring MANY laws) to do anything that it took to prevent another attack. As someone who studied political science and knows much about the horrible things that the CIA did under the Bush Administration with the EIT (enhanced interrogation techniques) much of this was not necessarily surprising to me. What surprised me was just how much disregard for basic human rights the CIA had in going through the interrogation process.
The Report chronicles the lead up and creation of “The Committee Study of the Central Intelligence Agency’s Detention and Interrogation Program” also known today as “The Torture Report”. Senate staffer Daniel J. Jones (Adam Driver) is tasked with leading the Investigation into the CIA’s method of torture of who they deemed as terrorist suspects after Sep. 11th. The movie shows right from the start that Jones is ambitious and eager to make an impact from behind the scenes and will stop at nothing to make sure that this information gets out to the public. The rest of the actors in the movie are well cast with special recognition to Jon Hamm, Tim Blake Nelson, Michael C. Hall and Annette Bening (who was amazing) who portrays former senator Dianne Feinstein. Much of the work that Driver does really shows you just how much Jones wanted this report to come out and be seen by the people all around the world, not because he wanted to become famous or be looked at as a whistle blower. The driving force and reason that Jones wanted all of this to come out was because it was the right thing to do. Period.
The CIA did things that no one should ever have to go through and experience, no matter how guilty they might be of something. Adam Driver also showed some really good range in channeling how sick and tired Jones was of hearing and seeing the amount of red tape and policy that he had to go through to get this report out. Ultimately almost risking his entire career and his livelihood because of how much he cared about the information he worked over five years to research. This film does not paint the United States in the ultimate negative light, but rather shows all sides of the issue to help you completely understand just how tricky the situation was. Driver’s incredible performance from beginning to end completely anchors this movie as you see how much Jones struggled in getting this very important report out in the open. And looking at where politics are today, we are still feeling the effects of 9/11 with accountability being the most important aspect. This film is just another look at how great of an actor Adam Driver really is, and this isn’t the only movie in 2019 that he will get appreciation for.
The Verdict