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Movies / On DVD / Nothing But the Truth
Nothing But the Truth

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Nothing But the Truth (2008)

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Reviews Counted:49

Fresh:39

Rotten:10

Average Rating:6.8/10

Consensus: A well-crafted political thriller, Nothing But the Truth features a strong cast that helps the real-life drama make an effortless transition to the big screen.

Runtime: 1 hr 48 mins

Genre: Dramas

Synopsis: Inspired by real-life political events, director Rod Lurie (THE CONTENDER) once again delves into issues of power and gender with NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH, an engaging thriller about the right to a... Inspired by real-life political events, director Rod Lurie (THE CONTENDER) once again delves into issues of power and gender with NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH, an engaging thriller about the right to a free press and the price of principles. As the film opens, the president of the United States has survived an assassination attempt. Believing that the leader of Venezuela was behind the plot, the U.S. launches a military attack against the country. In Washington, D.C., reporter Rachel Armstrong (Kate Beckinsale) has revealed that Erica Van Doren (Vera Farmiga), the wife of the U.S. Ambassador to Venezuela, is a C.I.A. operative who found no proof of a plot. Armstrong quickly finds herself contending with both Van Doren and special prosecutor Patton DuBois (Matt Dillon), hellbent on discovering Armstrong's source. When she refuses to reveal her source, Armstrong is jailed for contempt of court. In the troubled year that follows both women will confront the harsh realities of life during wartime, including the questioning of their patriotism and even threats to their lives. As a Supreme Court hearing draws near, and with her family cracking under the strain, Armstrong must decide whether her individual needs trump the importance of civil liberties. Lurie ably balances the personal struggles with the political machinations, while Beckinsale and Farmiga compellingly convey each woman's strength of conviction. The result is a challenging, chillingly relevant cautionary tale about truth and consequences. [More]

Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Matt Dillon, Angela Bassett, Alan Alda

Starring: Kate Beckinsale, Matt Dillon, Angela Bassett, Alan Alda, Vera Farmiga, David Schwimmer, Courtney B. Vance, Noah Wyle, Floyd Abrams, Preston Bailey

Director: Rod Lurie

Director: Rod Lurie
Screenwriter: Rod Lurie
Producer: Bob Yari, Marc Frydman, Rod Lurie
Composer: Larry Groupe
Studio: Yari Film Group

[See More Credits]

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Reviews for Nothing But the Truth

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21 - 40 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Lurie's style has grown increasingly fluid, and the players (especially Farmiga) deliver, but he tosses everything away with the last twist.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles CityBeat | comment Comment
12/19/08
Andy Klein
Andy Klein
Los Angeles CityBeat

All this plays out in brisk fashion, and the actors, who also include Alan Alda as Rachel's venerable lawyer, mostly seem to be having a high old time.

Full Review Source: Christian Science Monitor | comment Comment
12/19/08
Peter Rainer
Peter Rainer
Christian Science Monitor

The best thing about Nothing But the Truth is Vera Farmiga.

Full Review Source: Reeling Reviews | comment Comment
12/19/08
Robin Clifford
Robin Clifford
Reeling Reviews

Nothing But The Truth operates a lot like Billy Ray's Shattered Glass and Breach, offering up the sort of no-nonsense, meat-and-potatoes docudrama that's in short supply these days.

Full Review Source: AV Club | comment Comment
12/19/08
Scott Tobias
Scott Tobias
AV Club

The last-minute switcheroo suggests, perhaps unintentionally, that Rachel is less a martyr to the cause than a schemer looking to cover her tracks.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment 1 Comment
12/19/08
Sam Adams
Sam Adams
Los Angeles Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The two lead actresses play superbly rounded characters, both smart, tough customers unused to being pushed around, yet wives and mothers whose domestic concerns are as important to them as professional ones.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Daily News | comment Comment
12/19/08
Bob Strauss
Bob Strauss
Los Angeles Daily News

A political thriller about a journalist who becomes a spiritual warrior and boldy and courageously demonstrates the moral virtue of fortitude.

Full Review Source: Spirituality and Practice | comment Comment
12/18/08
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spirituality and Practice

When the main source is finally revealed, it should be fodder for conversation but seems more like a punchline.

Full Review Source: Metromix.com | comment Comment
12/18/08
Matt Pais
Matt Pais
Metromix.com

There’s a halfway point when the rush of watching the inner machinations of power players turns into the listless predictability of a TV courtroom drama, crossed with the voyeurism of a mild grindhouse prison movie.

Full Review Source: Time Out New York | comment Comment
12/17/08
Stephen Garrett
Stephen Garrett
Time Out New York

Lurie has crafted a different kind of thriller, one with a mind and a heart.

Full Review Source: Rolling Stone | comment Comment
12/17/08
Peter Travers
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone

The sexing up/dumbing down fails to compensate for the gobs of punishingly dull blah-blah about crusading reporters.

Full Review Source: New York Post | comment Comment
12/17/08
Kyle Smith
Kyle Smith
New York Post

Though a final, sly revelation stacks the deck a bit, Truth makes a smart, measured case out of a real-life drama that wound up far less heroically.

Full Review Source: New York Daily News | comment Comment
12/17/08
Joe Neumaier
Joe Neumaier
New York Daily News

Rod Lurie's crisp take on the Valerie Plame case-with Vera Farmiga standing in for Plame and Kate Beckinsale for Judith Miller-is admirably bluster-free but suffers at times from movie-of-the-week syndrome.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
12/17/08
Chris Barsanti
Chris Barsanti
Film Journal International

If you think you know the premise or believe that this is just a fictional retelling of the Judith Miller scandal from a few years back, I beg you to leave those preconceptions at the door. I know I went in with my own. Nothing But the Truth is none of

Full Review Source: UGO | comment Comment
12/17/08
Jenna Busch
Jenna Busch
UGO

Among the many achievements in Lurie's script is how it manages to swing the viewer's sympathies toward Armstrong.

Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | comment Comment
12/17/08
Jay Antani
Jay Antani
Slant Magazine

Despite [it being] about a journalist at a powerful newspaper who is jailed for refusing to name her source, Nothing but the Truth has nothing to do with you know what or who.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
12/17/08
Manohla Dargis
Manohla Dargis
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Lurie isn't Larry Cohen, let alone Sam Fuller, but give him points for working the same tradition of engagé tabloid filmmaking.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
12/16/08
J. Hoberman
J. Hoberman
Village Voice

Most importantly, the film takes the issue beyond just journalistic integrity and the government's intrusion. It looks at real life.

Full Review Source: Can Magazine | comment Comment
12/16/08
Fred Topel
Fred Topel
Can Magazine

Nothing But the Truth has been made with brains, pace, and skill, and with a topical fury that puts it ahead of the curve on its real subject: the withering of freedom in a democracy gone apathetic.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
12/10/08
Owen Gleiberman
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly

Though Nothing But The Truth is fundamentally an independent undertaking, it boasts a star cast including Kate Beckinsale, Angela Basset, Matt Dillon and Alan Alda among others who provide the kind of performances for which the majors pay big bucks.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
12/05/08
Tim Cogshell
Tim Cogshell
Boxoffice Magazine
 
 
21 - 40 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 >> >|
all

Latest News for Nothing But the Truth

May 01, 2009: Rod Lurie Tells Nothing But the Truth Opens in new window
With two movies headed to theaters last fall, it looked like 2008 was going to be a banner year for Rod Lurie -- but everything can change in the blink of a studio bankruptcy,... More...

January 08, 2009: Broadcast Film Critics Name Critics' Choice Winners
The 14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards were given on January 8, 2009, to honor the finest achievements in 2008 filmmaking. A list of nominees follows below, with winners in bold: More...

December 19, 2008: Five Favorite Films with Director Rod Lurie
Nothing But the Truth director Rod Lurie (The Contender) took a circuitous route to Hollywood -- he was an army officer and an entertainment reporter before perching himself in... More...

December 09, 2008: Trailer & Poster review Opens in new window
More...

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