SHATTERED GLASS
US, 2003, 95 minutes, Colour.
Hayden Christensen, Peter Sarsgaard, Chloe Sevigny, Rosario Dawson, Melanie Lynskey, Hank Azaria, Mark Blum, Steve Zahn, Ted Kotcheff.
Directed by Billy Ray.
There is a play on words in this title. The subject is Stephen Glass, ace young journalist in the 1990s with the prestigious The New Republic magazine in Washington DC. Over several years, he came up with dazzling suggestions for articles, carried out top interviews and produced over forty featured articles.
In recent times, there have been several scandals in the world of the press, of people plagiarising stories, of journalists inventing stories and creating their alleged sources. This was what Stephen Glass did.
The film is fascinating as it takes us inside a popular and respected magazine office, to see the working journalists, the editorial conferences and decisions, the particular roles of staff to ensure that a quality magazine appears with every issue. Hayden Christiansen (abandoning the surliness he does so expertly as Annakin in the Star Wars prequels and in such films as Life as a House) is all smiles, boyish charm, bespectacled intelligence and inventive vitality as Stephen Glass. We are as fascinated by him as the staff are, believe the convincing stories he proposes and see, through his imagination, what he eventually writes. We are also fascinated as it all begins to unravel and we see him pathetically pleading to be liked while astutely covering his tracks.
The rest of the cast blend well into the world of the magazine. Hank Azariah is the editor, Mike Kelly, who employed Glass as well as advising him (and who, before his untimely death in Iraq in 2002, acted as technical adviser for the film). Peter Saarsgard is the new editor, less charismatic, but faced to deal with the scandal. Chloe Sevigny is the assistant. Steve Zahn has a very good role as an investigator with a media watch website.
The war in Iraq raised all kinds of media questions in challenges, what was actual reporting, what was censored, what was 'reconstructed'. This film offers intriguing background into the media reporting world.
1. A true story, the perspective of the New Republic, the perspective of Stephen Glass, the crisis in journalism in the late 90s and early 21st century? The picture of Washington, DC?
2. The insight into publications, into the life of a magazine, the strong collage of all the detail of work going into the production of a magazine, the staff, the office itself and its layout, the editor, editorial meetings, plans and discussions, features, journalists at work, loyalties, the work of editing (and the pernickety demands for punctuation at times), different jobs, the regularity of the magazine coming out, its continued reputation? The audience invited into the office and made to feel at home there?
3. The title, intimations of fragility, Stephen's name and the ending of his career?
4. Journalism, issues of truth and lies, reporting (the art of capturing behaviour), sources, verifying facts, private lies, the need for photos (but their being able to be manipulated as well)? Inept control from management? Website investigators, investigative journalism? The role of the public arena, the public's demand for knowing the truth and knowing it immediately, imposing a morality on the media? Public righteousness? Expectations of truth?
5. The portrait of Stephen Glass, Hayden Christensen's screen presence, appearance? The initial lecture, the lecturer and her support of him, the glowing introduction, his charming speaking to the students, their telling him of their ambitions, his giving advice - the later reprise and this happening in his head? His training, his jobs, his part-time studies (was he actually studying or not?), his kindness and thoughtfulness to fellow workers, the Coca-Cola? bottle? His relationship with Mike Kelly? His appearance, large clothes, awkward, his glasses, his emotional needs? Personable, the meetings, his charm and stories, the laughter? His working well with Caitlin, her admiration for him? Amy, her support, her own personal hopes? Working with Chuck but not particularly liking him? Seeing him in action, with the Young Republicans, at the computer convention, the hackers? His interviews, the sources, his success and notoriety? Everything before him? The cracks in the stories, his personal fragility, his aiming to please, Mike and the long discussion about honesty in his work? The owner and the demand for change, Marty Peretz and his policy, Mike Kelly going, Chuck coming? Chuck receiving the information, the staff loyal to Stephen, the phone calls from Adam Penenberg, the confrontations, going to the site of the hackers' convention, Chuck confronting Stephen about the truth? His defensiveness, his brother and his reference for sources? Reality and unreality? His being fired, desperation? The postscript about his having written a novel about these experiences?
6. The audience sharing the perspective of the staff on Stephen? The shock of the truth? The issue of how to deal with a person like Stephen, personally, for the good of the magazine, public opinion?
7. The portrait of management, Mike Kelly and his running of the magazine, loyalties of the staff, sympathy for Stephen, the long talk with him about honesty? His being fired? Marty Peretz, the demands, the staff working at detailed proofreading and punctuation? His tough attitude, the decision of hiring Chuck Lane?
8. Caitlin, personality, at work, her loyalty towards Stephen, defending him? Her being forced to see the truth, the final support of Chuck? Amy, her ambitions, wanting to write columns, Caitlin's comments about her abilities and inabilities? The other members of the staff, suspicions of Chuck, the final signatures and their loyalty?
9. Chuck, co-worker, solid, less imaginative? His being given the job of editor, the staff resentment? His mechanisms for coping? The scenes of his family life? Sympathetic, understanding what was going on after his investigations, the information, going to the convention site, the files? The magazine's reputation? His talks with Stephen, his firing him? His self-confidence in what he had done, meeting the staff, expecting their resentment, getting their loyalty?
10. Stephen and the visualising of his fantasies, the lecture to the students, the visit to the Young Republicans and their raucous behaviour, the drinking, the mini-bars etc? The boy genius and his hacking, the hackers' convention, the parents? The return to the scene with Chuck, his believing that he was there, the reality and there being no convention?
11. Adam Penenberg, his boss criticising him for not getting the story, his assistant? His research, phone calls, discussions with Glass, with his references, with Chuck? His detective work, the expose? The work of Forbes' digital website?
12. A film about the media in the 90s and the beginning of the 21st century, life of the media, scrutinising the media, its accountability?
