Trumbo is hurt by an unwillingness to actually explore Trumbo's own politics and delve into his actual beliefs about communism, Stalin or Marxist ideology.
Comment
10/18/08
Trumbo (2008)
80
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:51
Fresh:41
Rotten:10
Average Rating:6.7/10
Consensus: Trumbo celebrates the life and work of blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo with measures of humor and sadness.
Runtime: 1 hr 36 mins
Genre: Education/General Interest
Synopsis: This documentary focuses on the Oscar-winning mind behind ROMAN HOLIDAY and THE BRAVE ONE. TRUMBO centers on Dalton Trumbo, a screenwriter and member of the Hollywood 10 who vaulted from the A-list... [More]
Starring: Joan Allen, Brian Dennehy, Michael Douglas, Paul Giamatti
Director: Peter Askin
Reviews for Trumbo
The best way to learn about Trumbo is through his writing, which is spirited, dry, and utterly convinced of its truth
06/27/08
Trumbo is well worth seeing for what it tells us about the age in which this irrepressible individualist lived, loved, suffered and finally triumphed.
07/09/08
... a beautifully directed and passionate homage to the dignity of one man against the indignity of the times.
08/19/08
Like the great artist he is Trumbo's work speaks as loudly today as it did 50 years ago. Perhaps we should all listen.
09/13/09
Trumbo is most focused when it lets the man and his peers testify directly.
06/22/08
A ousing documentary as ornery, orotund and captivating as its subject.
10/18/08
Trumbo was initiated by two of Trumbo's children, but their attempt to personalize the film isn't quite personal enough.
08/22/08
Blacklisted screenwriter and freedom-fighter Dalton Trumbo is revealed in this touching documentary that utilizes talking-head interviews along with Trumbo's letters to flesh out the man responsible for such film classics as "Johnny Got His Gun," "Spartac
06/23/08
A fine counterpart to Good Night, and Good Luck and a unique amalgam of talking heads and theatrics, the story of Dalton Trumbo and how he and his family dealt with being blacklisted is an amazing one.
06/25/08
Using rich archival footage, including Trumbo's own words and letters, this comprehensive docu sheds light on the Oscar-winning blacklisted writer (one of the Hollywood Ten) who continued to be creative in exile.
06/17/08
It's Trumbo's words -- unfiltered and often unhinged -- that make this doc worth seeing.
06/27/08
Epistolary dramas are often big bores, but this film is much better than it has the right to be given the variety of actors playing Trumbo.
06/12/08
An amazing primer on how to stand by your principles even as the unprincipled knock you around.
10/18/08
Although it glosses over a few relevant details, Trumbo also functions as a passionate defense of truth from a writer who embodied all of the virtues that America claims to value.
09/12/08
Askin's dramatic camera angles are somewhat awkward, but the superb performances and the words eventually win out.
08/14/08
A portrait of Dalton Trumbo, the writer who defied HUAC. Joan Allen, Paul Giamatti, Liam Neeson, David Strathairn and Donald Sutherland, among others, read excerpts from Trumbo's letters. Moving and compelling. Must see.
05/27/09
The substance of those letters, along with documentary footage and a touching appearance by Kirk Douglas, throws a baleful light on a bleak chapter of American history.
07/01/08
Using Trumbo's letters, statements, speeches and scripts, director Peter Askin creates a rich portrait of a cantankerous, principled man of words.
06/27/08
The film is an enlightening recap of '50s Red Scare politics, and a parade of actors giving meaningful, earnest readings of Trumbo's speeches and letters.
10/18/08
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