Since the end of Breaking Bad in 2013, audiences have been quietly anticipating a performance from Bryan Cranston that lives up to his role of Walter White. Now with his turn as Hollywood screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, that wait is over. But the film is not just an impressive performance from Cranston, it also touches on a period of film history that is often forgotten in the larger context.Dalton Trumbo (Bryan Cranston) is a successful screenwriter who is among the elite of Hollywood. He is also a member of the Communist Party, something that makes him and fellow writers somewhat of a target in post-war America, especially for staunch anti-Communists like former actress Hedda Hopper (Helen Mirren). Because of his involvement, Trumbo soon has to testify before a hearing by the House Commitee on Un-American Activities. Because he refuses to answer any of the questions, he is charged with contempt of Congress and is sent to prison with ten other writers, including Arlen Hird (Louis C.K.). On the outside world, Trumbo's family are struggling with not having him around and his friend Eddie Robinson (Michael Stuhlbarg) leaves him high and dry when he names Trumbo as a communist. When Trumbo is released from prison, he and his fellow writers decide to sell scripts written under pseudonyms.
Bryan Cranston really steals every scene he's in and understandably too. With this performance he delves completely into the character, more so than any character he's ever done before (in real life I imagine him to be a mix of Tim Whatley from Seinfeld and Hal from Malcolm in the Middle). There was even a part where I had to force myself to see Bryan Cranston in the character. Not only is this a testament to the committed performance by him, but it is also glorious praise of Dalton Trumbo. The real man had an intoxicating and humourous quality to him and all the existing footage we have of him is fantastic to watch because he was such a larger than life figure.
Praise must also be heaped upon director Jay Roach's approach to this film. He comes mainly from a background of making comedy movies, namely the Austin Powers and Meet the Parents series of films. While this film has a large amount of comedy, it is at its heart a serious story about the hysteria that surrounded the spread of communism in 1950s America. It was crazy to watch Hedda Hopper to get up in a stir about reasons that are not at all apparent. The look of this film is also amazing, but primarily because it has the look of being shot on a set. Now normally that would seem quite out of place in any other film, but here it works fantastically, especially since it is about a period in film where sets were used prolifically.
The supporting cast are also wonderful, even though Cranston steals the show. Diane Lane plays Trumbo's strong supportive wife remarkably well and even though I'm not a fan of Elle Fanning, she does a good job in this movie. The same can be said of Helen Mirren. Both Louis C.K. and Michael Stuhlbarg show incredible range and in the case of Louis, he shows some incredible dramatic acting because he does not have a single joke in this movie. Also the makeup was fantastic enough to make Dean O'Gorman look exactly like Kirk Douglas.
Trumbo is one man's tribute to another. Cranston gives a performance so authentic, it's easy to hold up footage of the actual man and see how good it is. The supporting cast are also wildly brilliant.
