Combat journalist

Provocative thriller shows the danger of telling the truth

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In Van Halen’s 1992 music video “Right Now,” two animated figures commit a cruel bit of bullying on a third figure above the words “Right now, our government is doing things we think only other countries do.” It’s a trite bit of subversion, but dang it all if 24 years later, wiretapping scandals and drone bombings haven’t made Sammy Hagar & Co. into wango-tango pop culture prophets of doom.

In “Kill the Messenger” Jeremy Renner plays Gary Webb, the investigative journalist who connected ‘80s crack use with the U.S. Iran-Contra affair. His three-part expose, “Dark Alliance,” was printed in 1996, 10 years after the Reagan administration acknowledged the CIA was complicit in using cocaine trafficking money to fund Nicaraguan rebels. Webb won Journalist of the Year from the Bay Area Society of Professional Journalists for his piece, but the story led to his personal and professional collapse, as documented in this spoilery-titled thriller.

Webb’s story made national headlines, but not for the right reasons. Instead of celebrating his investigative skills that spelled out in black and white that the U.S. government essentially turned a blind eye toward the domestic influx of cocaine, competing papers sought to discredit him — according to the film, the Los Angeles Times alone set 17 reporters to work tearing the story to ribbons. When they couldn’t find a way, they trashed his reputation.

“Anybody can look bad if you dig deep enough,” Webb says when his dirty laundry starts coming out. It’s a despicable case of ad hominem attack, and it’s maddeningly aimed at the wrong person. But while “Kill the Messenger” aspires for the intelligence of “All the President’s Men,” in the hands of director Michael Cuesta (“Homeland”) it’s a thriller. An engaging thriller that makes you question the system, but no more.

We follow Webb as he tracks his leads to abandoned Central American airstrips that were used for shipping tons of cocaine. We watch as he meets with retired drug kingpins who were once on the government payroll. Our hearts race with his as Nicaraguan nationalists point guns at his temple and mysterious strangers follow him through late night parking garages. And we spend lots of time with him as he bonds with his family. But the implications of his determination are clear: Sooner or later, one world will come crashing into the other.

Since his breakout turn in “The Hurt Locker,” Renner has pursued a role worthy of his intensity — this comes close. He’s become a utility player in major action franchises, but as a leading man, he still seems like a blank slate. In this case, it’s not a hindrance, as he’s supported by a full phalanx of powerhouse actors — Andy Garcia, Ray Liotta and Michael Sheen all take turns bouncing him around, giving us a full taste of the danger he’s in.

The real enragement of the film comes from the implication that the mainstream media was complicit in being the government’s mouthpiece. Of all the initial follow-ups to Webb’s story, only CIA or former CIA spokespeople were consulted. Worse, Webb’s story was twisted to make it seem as if he was accusing the U.S. government of engineering the so-called crack epidemic to keep the African American population in check. He never made that claim, but today we are still dealing with the repercussion of drug cartels in Central America and inner city drug addition in the U.S., giving credence to the conspiracy theorists who leaped with that info before they looked.

Unfortunately, “Kill the Messenger” looks like it’s going to make about as big a splash as “Dark Alliance” made when it was printed — last weekend it made less than $1 million. It makes you think that a documentary on Webb would have been better served, but either way it’s difficult to market a film that’s this honest. And who likes hearing the truth?

“Kill the Messenger” plays exclusively at NCG Eastwood Cinemas, 2500 Showtime Drive, Lansing. (517) 316-9100, ncgmovies. com/lansing.

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