Edward Snowden is one of the most controversial figures in modern history. Known to some as a whistleblower and others as a traitor, his leaking of NSA surveillance patterns has sparked debates that have sprouted up throughout the world. Snowden’s story is one that requires nuance, impartiality and levelheadedness. So hey, let’s have Oliver Stone make his biopic.
Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Snowden, the film follows his journey from soldier to computer genius to disillusioned NSA employee and finally, to whistleblower. It also stars Zachary Quinto and Melissa Leo as the reporters whom Snowden worked with (documented by Leo’s real-life counterpart in the 2014 film Citizenfour), and Tom Wilkinson, Shailene Woodley, Timothy Olyphant, Rhys Ifans and Nicolas Cage, because of course.
Look, this may very well be a fine film. Stone’s done great work before-Platoon is great, and Born on the Fourth of July is pretty good, but for the past twenty years, Stone has been the king of preachy sh*t. JFK is awful, Savages is worse, and considering this trailer is scored by “When the Saints Go Marching In” played slow and dramatically, I just can’t see any way I enjoy this film.
Snowden will officially be released September 16, 2016, but is having its Comic Con debut as I write this. I’ve heard early rumblings that it’s fine, nothing more, but I will keep you posted if this all of a sudden becomes the next Oscar frontrunner (it won’t). Watch the new trailer below.
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