Bombshell

FOX in the Hen-House (The Cure For What Ailes You)
or
"A Babe With No Geezer? This Can't Be a FOX Affiliate!"

"The first thing you should know about me..." says Bombshell's version of Megyn Kelly (Charlize Theron) right off the bat "...is I have a big mouth."

Well, for good or ill, that's the FOX news paradigm, and it has nothing to do with sexism or the sex of the on-air talent. Everybody on FOX News has a big mouth, an overly-aggressive personality, and a slightly off-lobe brain that considers opportunity over content. I've never had an illusion of any of the FOX News staff being thoughtful or contemplative. 

Not even while looking in a mirror.

It is always "Hot Talk" on FOX NEWS, that most empty of formats that sheds heat but never any light. Sure, it's entertaining if you're of that frame of mind, but you have to have the naivete of a tither to a TV evangelist to buy it. Caveat Empty-Head.

END of personal FOX screed: onto the movie.

Bombshell is written by Charles Randolph, who did such things as The Life of David Gale, Love and Other Drugs, and The Big Short (in ascending order of quality) and there's not a fourth wall he's not afraid to kick at to get to the audience. If something gets too tough to communicate (as in The Big Short), he will stop the proceedings to explain it to the Nth degree. In the case of Bombshell, we get the whole story by way of Megyn Kelly's Greek chorus, who explains what goes on at FOX news, the work environment, the philosophy, and her role in the environment, which she sees as somewhat loftier than others do. She is about to be a contributor to the Republican debates and it is her intention to hit candidate Donald Trump with his history of boorishness towards women. She is understandably nervous, but determined to make an impact. 

Meanwhile. Gretchen Carlson (Nicole Kidman) was on the popular morning show "Fox and Friends," has moved to an afternoon show host and she's in the middle of contract negotiations. But, she wants something more. She's tired of being treated like a bimbo, on and off-screen, and wants to do something more with her show, to the point where she starts to veer a little off-point from the standard fare and she wants there to be a little more respect given her. At least, knock off the crass jokes. Her current contract prevents her from suing FOX. But, there's nothing in her contract from personally suing the Chairman of FOX NEWS, Roger Ailes (portrayed by John Lithgow and half a ton of make-up).

Ailes is all about loyalty...all about loyalty. He runs FOX with an iron fist on the tiller (because, as he says, if he doesn't, news will always veer left). So, he runs a tight ship, emphasizes loyalty—and if you're loyal, you'll be rewarded, maybe. It's frankly not that different a psychological threat as an CEO expounds these days, drawing comparisons to businesses as family, with, of course BIG Daddy calling the shots. There is no question, or even acknowledgment, that there might be another way to do things other than a patriarchy.

Carlson's strategem is closely observed by Kelly, who is slightly distracted by the fall-out from her debate question, finding out, to her distress, that she has become the focus of coverage rather than the issues she was trying to bring up. She remains silent when investigators for Carlson start looking for women who can confirm harassment allegations against Ailes.

Into the mix comes Kayla Popisil (Margot Robbie), young, blond, conservative, raised in a mid-west religious household, who wants to make it big at FOX NEWS, which is her dream. She starts to work her way up from basement producer and then gets her "big meeting" with Ailes, who gives her the loyalty speech and a test of her loyalty...that she'll be willing to cooperate.

Bombshell is tough (in the screenplay department, anyway), not only on the corporate environment that allows such indiscretions for the aggrandizement of its "Master of the Universe" CEO's...or anyone capable of using sexual blackmail just because they can, but also for the lack of sisterhood that would allow such stuff to be contained as "company secrets." This isn't the stuff of—as companies like to advertise—"a name you can trust," but is more in keeping with the thuggery of a jail-yard, where everybody's in it for themselves. Most companies are inherently predatory—it is their bottom line to take your money, after all—it isn't a stretch for them sweep dirt under the rug, hide things you might like in small-printed terms and conditions, and circle the wagons in Escher-like PR boiler-plate. FOX NEWS is merely the loudest, most blathering (in protesting its innocence) example of such predatory practices and the default follow-up of denial.

There's the added inherent sexism that's employed whenever the victims are women...the same sort of doubling-down on that only adds insult to injury in a rape trial. Nobody ever questions that events happen because the perpetrators are men—why?—or that the ruthlessness displayed in business (and praised, admired and emulated) might be the same alligator-brained synapse that makes power-brokers think they can use it against their own employees. Why does loyalty only work from the bottom up and not the top down? As long as there's that disparity, loyalty must continue to be lateral among peers to create strength in numbers and create a din that drowns out corporate whispers.

I just wish there was a better director in charge of it. Jay Roach has been reaching for issue-cred after starting out making comedies of "indeterminate humor" (the "Austin Powers" series, the "Meet the Parents" series, Dinner for Schmucks) and his approach is still uninspiring and rarely moves an ability to "get the shot." In other hands, Bombshell might have been a more powerful movie, even a galvanizing one.

Less a "Me, Too" movie and more of a "Meh, Too: movie.