'Kill the Messenger' star Jeremy Renner delivers a memorable performance
鈥淜ill the Messenger鈥� is a rallying cry for old-school investigative聽journalism, warts and all. Gary Webb (Jeremy Renner) was a prize-winning reporter for the San Jose Mercury News who, in a three-part聽series in 1995 and 1996, outlined how the CIA-backed contras聽made money in the '80s smuggling drugs during聽their fight against the democratically elected Sandinista government in聽Nicaragua聽while the CIA聽looked the other way. His further contention, that the drug-smuggling聽fueled the crack epidemic in America鈥檚 inner cities, specifically in South聽Central Los Angeles, was seized upon by black activists.聽
But this is not an 鈥淎ll the President鈥檚 Men鈥�-style success story.聽Webb鈥檚 thinly sourced reporting was attacked by major papers like The聽New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post, which,聽according to the film, turned on Webb because they resented being聽scooped. Even his own newspaper ended up re-reporting and distancing聽themselves from Webb鈥檚 series. Disgraced, unable to find work in聽journalism, he died of self-inflicted gunshot wounds in 2004.
One of the problems with 鈥淜ill the Messenger,鈥� directed by Michael聽Cuesta and written by Peter Landesman, is that, although it is firmly聽in Webb鈥檚 corner, it never details the arguments of his opposition.聽Essentially his opponents are portrayed as spoilsports out to, well, kill the聽messenger. There are also too many scenes where people in the know聽caution Webb with thudders like 鈥淵ou have no idea what you鈥檙e getting聽into.鈥�
What hits home is Renner鈥檚 performance, which gives full weight both聽to Webb鈥檚 fierce, abiding love for journalism and his despair when his聽livelihood 鈥� his reason for being 鈥� is trashed. It鈥檚 a tragedy, doubly so聽since the core of Webb鈥檚 allegations remains unchallenged today.聽Grade: B (Rated R for language and drug content.)
