Richard Jewell

Richard Jewell is perfectly executed moviemaking made under a steady hand, just as we like it from an eighty-nine-year-old Eastwood. The plot is unsurprising, in fact, you can predict at the beginning how it will necessarily turn out, but it's not about that at all; Clint Eastwood can tell a human story on the screen for more than two hours, and you just don't want to take your eyes off it. Richard Jewell is a dreaming dolt and makes some huge mistakes every so often but has his heart in the right place and will definitely win the hearts of the audience, too. Paul Walter Hauser as Richard Jewell and Sam Rockwell’s predatory lawyer make a captivating duo on screen. (01/23/2020)

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. (11/18/2020)

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. (04/15/2020)

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. (08/13/2020)

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. (02/06/2020)