R | 2 h 8 min | Drama | 1983
Nicaraguans have long been at the mercy of deadly regimes, whether dictators or Cuban and Russian-inspired communists. But the world would’ve been blind to both horrors were it not for the courage and integrity of international journalists. ABC-TV’s Bill Stewart was one such.
Stewart’s killing in 1979 by President Anastasio Somoza Debayle’s forces, turned public opinion against the reigning dynasty and dictator. It also triggered Somoza’s overthrow by rebels: equally callous communist Sandinistas. That U.S. President Carter’s administration had, at various stages, disastrously propped up both sides, and that President Reagan had opposed both, is another story.
Roger Spottiswoode’s film, loosely based on those events, ponders journalistic challenges and choices in conflict zones and shows how vital it is that journalists speak, and stay with, the truth.
Veteran American journalist Alex Grazier (Gene Hackman) and his younger colleague, photographer Russell Price (Nick Nolte), cover conflict in Central Africa so compellingly that they land a cover story in Time magazine. They then join the international press in Central America. There, conflict rages between Somoza’s (René Enríquez) forces and rebels loyal to underground communist leader, Rafael, who’s never been photographed.
Grazier stumbles upon Price’s affair with journalist Claire Stryder (Joanna Cassidy), but tired of covering one conflict after another, overlooks it all and heads home. Meanwhile, American mercenary Oates (Ed Harris), whom Price knows from his Africa days, shows up alongside Somoza’s forces, pitted against rebels. Despite Oates’s prompting to pick a side and help out, Price sticks with journalistic neutrality. Later, immersed in the tragedy of conflict, he’s less sure.
Price ignores Somoza’s announcement of Rafael’s death, and continues to track him down. But when Price and Stryder find Rafael dead, they succumb to pleas of despondent rebel leaders. Price agrees, however reluctantly, to fake photos of Rafael alive, hoping circulated photos will keep rebel hopes alive, too, at least until Somoza is overthrown. At first, it works. Rebel morale surges. Grazier arrives to interview Rafael. Then, it backfires in ways that shame Price and Stryder. Now, as the conflict unravels, they may get a chance to redeem themselves.
Documentary Feel
Mr. Spottiswoode’s film is riveting. The characters of Grazier and Price, loosely based on Stewart, mirror not just his obvious bravery but, plausibly, his less obvious internal struggles.Dictators don’t hold press conferences; here, Somoza caricatures even that by holding one, taking no questions, and merely issuing statements.
A camera’s whirring sound accompanies black-and-white freeze frames of chaotic streets to distinguish Price’s telling photos from the film’s action.
Stryder’s relationship with Grazier, and romance with Price, isn’t a mere subplot; it also serves as a metaphor for the dilemma in picking sides. Oates has no dilemma; he picks the side that pays better.
Mr. Nolte toys with his cameras when he’s thinking or needs time to give himself mental and emotional space to weigh things before committing. Tall and striking, he’s a formidable and occasionally faltering figure. Cameras dangle from his shoulders like loaded guns. Not one or two, but three or four at once, so he can shoot in rapid succession without reloading film. He picks a subject, aims, and shoots at will from a battered doorway, on foot in deserted back-alleys, atop a crowded jeep or truck, or through the window of a speeding car. His clickety-click mimics muted gunfire, as his lenses capture everything: gendarmes, guerillas, and graffiti.
At first, Price refuses to fake photos: “I’m a journalist!” he says. But a rebel coaxes him. “This has nothing to do with journalism. Enough of our people have been lost already. … Once the war is over, none of this matters.”
As Price wilts, he isn’t thinking for himself: They want my lens to tell their story because the world will believe it; this is precisely why his camera shouldn’t lie.
Here, Mr. Spottiswoode controls brightness and shadow to portray certainty on one side, confusion on the other. He shows how all of this matters, especially in fast-paced situations that inspire pity rather than professionalism. More so.
Once, seeking the elusive Rafael and following rebels to a shootout against Oates and Nicaraguan forces, Price stays quiet about Oates’s escape. That costs the rebels; Oates returns to kill one of them.
Later, it’s a furious Grazier who must remind Price and Stryder of their calling to witness (not weaponize) the truth. Mr. Spottiswoode’s film echoes Grazier. Sure, in conflict zones, journalists are as vulnerable as combatants or civilians. But, unlike others, journalists don’t need to pick a side, they ought to have picked one already—the truth.
