Le Cas Richard Jewell

A confident Clint Eastwood serves up another compelling true story that is intense and suspenseful from start to finish, and Sam Rockwell has another perfect supporting role! (After Jojo Rabbit for the second time this year). Well acted, interestingly shot, emotional towards the end and overall a very entertaining piece of work where I kept my hands clenched for the entire running time. Praise should also be given to the nasty detective Jon Hamm, the bitchy reporter played by Olivia Wilde, and the unknown Paul Walter Hauser, who also gives a great performance. I hope it's not Eastwood’s last film. 8/10. (06/02/2020)

Another finely tuned wow from Clint. This smooth-gliding story is further augmented by the acting performances. Powerhouse Sam Rockwell props up Houser in every scene they have together, making the times when Richard gets pissed even more impressive. Olivia Wilde, representing the media, could very easily have fallen into clichés, but in the end she actually rocks, and Hamm as an amoral FBI asshole is the embodiment of everything that you hate about the powers that be. In the end, this turns into an average guy vs. the government and the media battle, but it’s shot with such grace that I am giving it the fifth star. Movies where neither the government nor the media are right are always satisfying to watch. Especially these days. (18/11/2020)

When I write that I find Clint Eastwood to be the most admirable filmmaker working today, you might think I'm mainly admiring the fact that he's still making movies on the cusp of 90. And he's doing it so well. That's certainly true, but I admire him even more for the subjects he chooses and how he handles them. Richard Jewell is another one of his "ordinary heroes" who lived through something that you wouldn't quite want to believe if it hadn't really happened. However, unlike Sully Sullenberger, who was "only" in danger of losing his career, Richard Jewell stands in front of the electric chair and, thanks to the fact that he is actually an overgrown child of principle and looks up to the law enforcement officials without bounds, slowly and willingly sits in that chair himself. The story is wonderfully scary. Without exception superbly acted (if I had to single anyone out, P. W. Hauser would be my favorite chameleon aside from Sam Rockwell) and most importantly so beautifully told, in a slow balladic manner with occasional light relief in the form of sensitive humor that both puts the viewer at ease and highlights the absurdity of the whole situation. Wonderful. (17/01/2020)

Une œuvre cinématographique réalisée, comme il se doit, de main de maître par un Clint Eastwood ici âgé de quatre-vingt-neuf ans. Rien de surprenant du côté de l’action et on peut même deviner dès le début où va nous mener la logique du film. Mais ça ne fait rien : Eastwood parvient à raconter, sur une durée de plus de deux heures, une histoire pleine d’humanité qui nous captive du début à la fin. On y découvre Richard Jewell, un gaffeur idéaliste qui n’en a pas moins le cœur sur la main – et qui gagne ainsi celui (le cœur) du public. Et Paul Walter Hauser, l’acteur qui le représente, forme un tandem emballant avec Sam Rockwell dans la peau de l’avocat carnassier. (23/01/2020)

Richard Jewell is well made biographical drama that captivates the viewer especially with its strong subject matter and convincing performances by the main characters, led by the solid Paul Walter Hauser, the sharp Kathy Bates and the brilliant Sam Rockwell. It never ceases to amaze me that Clint Eastwood, at such an advanced age, can still make a film with a coherent story and an unforced build-up of events that shook the public nearly twenty-five years ago. I really bow down to him! In the case of the main character, the saying "beg for mercy" applies doubly, and it's really crazy how a person's life can change from hero to villain at the snap of a finger. Despite the slower pace, the film is told in such an engaging way that the two hours in the cinema go by like nothing. A quality cinematic experience guaranteed! (20/01/2020)

If you don't live to see the cinematic immortalization of your professional activities, you may end up an unlikely incel hero against whom the whole world conspires, or an incompetent journalistic whore who gets to her sources through the bedroom and realizes only too late what a bitch she was. It plays into Eastwood's hands that he's one of the truly last representatives of pure Republican thought in high Hollywood, so he makes Richard Jewell look refreshingly bizarre. In fact, he uses the same methods of building sympathy as any liberal biopic, but applies them to a character of the type who waits until 10:01 pm to call the cops that there are two people smoking down the street outside the pub. By looking at the protagonist through the veil of his own sympathies and ignoring his more than one problematic trait, he makes Jewell a funny harmless cartoon character, revolving in the twists and turns of a classic movie monument, and it's fun to see how it doesn’t work for the old man anymore. (15/04/2020)

For me personally, Clint Eastwood is a safe bet. I’ve always liked him as an actor, and even when he started directing, he hasn't let me down. I enjoyed this film for its great direction, quality screenplay and very good acting performances (especially Sam Rockwell in the role of a serious lawyer). Most importantly, it was another portrayal of the typically American witch hunt. (13/08/2020)