She Said: Exposing Weinstein and the origins of the #MeToo Movement
Carey Mulligan and Zoe Kazan lead hard-hitting drama She Said
It’s been five years since #MeToo went viral, with women around the globe sharing their stories of sexual harassment and abuse, in and outside of the workplace. She Said is the story of how two women – two working mothers – kickstarted the monumental movement and were instrumental in bringing down one of the most powerful Hollywood producers of the 21st century.
The film is based on the book She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement by Megan Twohey and Jodi Kantor, two journalists from The New York Times who published a report that exposed sexual abuse allegations against Harvey Weinstein. Directed by Maria Schrader (director of the Emmy-award winning miniseries Unorthodox) and with a screenplay by British playwright, screenwriter and author Rebecca Lenkiewicz (2013’s Ida), the biographical drama uncovers the women’s fight to get their incriminating exposé published and see change not just within the industry, but throughout the world.
Jodi Kantor (Kazan) and Meghan Twohey (Mulligan) were helped bring down one of the world’s most prolific predators
Carey Mulligan proves why she’s a two-time Oscar-nominee as she steps into the shoes of Megan Twohey. The Drive (2011) actor entwines fragility with fury as she forms the more brazen half of the pair of reporters. Zoe Kazan holds her own as the less aggressive journalist, taking on more of the emotionally steep one-on-one meetings with Weinstein’s victims. This interesting character dichotomy plays almost like a good-cop-bad-cop mystery, but the emotional weight of their sources’ stories keeps the drama from slipping into outright thriller territory.
Andre Braugher’s performance in a small but pivotal role as New York Times editor Dean Baquet is lauded
Andre Braugher (Raymond Holt in Emmy-winning comedy series Brooklyn Nine-Nine) swoops in with his cool, calm demeanour as Dean Baquet, New York Times Executive Editor. Baquet’s zero tolerance for games and dawdling cuts minutes off conversations that could foreseeably drag. Assistant managing editor Rebecca Corbett (Patricia Clarkson) is the other pillar of strength for Twohey and Kantor; she resembles a reliable, sympathetic mother figure. The film also stars Ashley Judd as herself, a crucial leader of the #MeToo movement – despite her fear of being ostracised – and public speaker for the TIME’S UP organisation.
She Said is an engaging drama
Some interesting editing choices remind us of the horrific reality of the story. Ambra Battilana Gutierrez’s disturbing recording of Weinstein admitting to groping the Filipina-Italian model is played over three shots of lavish hallways, merging together with soft fade transitions. The damning tape is a harsh reminder of the gravity of the real-life situation, giving the film a documentary feel. This has a different effect to Trump’s voice in an earlier scene, played by comedian and impressionist James Austin Johnson, where the absurdity of his defences will make you chuckle rather than shiver.
“People have tried to write this story before, and he kills it every time.” – Zelda Perkins (Samantha Morton)
Without sensationalising the event, Schrader explores the frustrations and roadblocks behind the making of the article. Whilst the constant back-and-forth between the ambitious journalists and terrified women is fairly dry, Lenkiewicz’s screenplay and Schrader’s direction ensure we are never emotionally disconnected from the story. Twohey’s struggles with post-natal depression, Kantor’s relationship with her inquisitive daughter and the traumatic retellings and personal complications from women, including Laura Madden (Jennifer Ehle) and Rowena Chiu (Angela Yeoh), reveal the shades of grey in a story that on the surface seems black-and-white.
Dramatising an exposé that changed the world
The white, open spaces of The New York Times offices provide a sense of security, just like the prestige of the newspaper’s name does to Weinstein’s ex-employees. Natasha Braier’s (Honey Boy) cinematography highlights the isolation and togetherness of the reporters with repeated wide shots in the lunchroom. Contrastingly, an impressive mirror shot in a dark restaurant reflects the dangerous and secretive element of the journalists’ work, making their investigation seem more spy-like investigative.
A little light on character development for our two leads might be the only thing to hurt Lenkiewicz’s chances of receiving an Oscar nomination for Adapted Screenplay at the 95th Academy Awards. The current front-runner for the award is Sarah Polley’s Women Talking, another female-written and -directed drama about women speaking out about sexual abuse. But Lenkiewicz understands the power of leaving some things unsaid, replacing a statistic or an argument with a scoff or pursed lips. This, and her ability to untangle a jungle of storylines to form a cohesive narrative, makes us want to see it through, even though we know how it ends, and puts her on many Oscars prediction lists.
Women fighting for women are at the heart of She Said
She Said is an exposé about an exposé – both as shocking as each other. Schrader’s more than two-hour long drama takes us behind the scenes of the creation of an article from two investigative journalists, revealing what it takes to deconstruct a system and rightfully ruin Miramax’s monster. And, despite the looming subject at the centre of the story, it still manages to pass the Bechdel test.
