Two years ago, workplaces in the western world changed. Women who had been made to feel uncomfortable in silence, propositioned for promotions or just on the lustful whims of men more powerful than they emerged from the shadows of forced shame to reclaim their right to feel comfortable while earning their paychecks. What began as the reveals from actresses in Hollywood trickled down to female factory workers in the Midwest and every profession in-between. Women of all ages and levels of accomplishment, from the experienced and powerful to the interns still trying to make their way, revealed what they had been through and their attempts to come to terms with what happens when you must make the choice between succumbing to unwanted advances or continuing your career, and how one handles the fallout from whichever you decide. A film documenting one of the more high profile workplace harassment scandals depicts the emotional turmoil behind this Sophie’s choice.
Bombshell takes inspiration from the true events surrounding the sexual harassment scandal surrounding the late Fox News creator Roger Ailes (John Lithgow) after allegations of impropriety and unfair retaliatory action from former anchor Gretchen Carlson (Nicole Kidman). Following the revelations from Carlson, superstar Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly (Charlize Theron) is faced with an impossible choice, using her cachet supporting Carlson and other accusers at the risk of her own career or remaining silent and not making any waves. While Megyn decides, young producer Kayla Pospisil (Margot Robbie) must decide how to handle harassment as a junior employee with dreams, but devastation over what she may have to do to realize them.
Bombshell’s depiction and exploration of the inner struggle that women face when sexually harassed is the best aspect of the film. The sense of dread and tension created during scenes involving Ailes and his interaction with his female employees not only assists in elevating the film’s quality but emphasizing just how stressful such situations are the women who find themselves ensnared in them. Narratively, the film analyzes the issue of workplace harassment through three separate lenses; the first being the perspective of a woman fed up with the boys club and its behavior, the second a young woman who unexpectedly finds herself the target of a superior’s advances, and lastly, a woman on the fence as to whether to help burn it all down or indulge her instinct to survive.
The first and most obvious arc is that of Gretchen who is fed up with the sexist treatment and is rewarded for her resistance to it with the isolation that often accompanies going out on a limb alone against a powerful entity. Gretchen has put everything on the line and is left to fight a multimillion-dollar corporation and any tactics it may employ with only two quality lawyers by her side. The fight we see her embark upon and the fallout ranging from abandonment from your peers and a struggle to find subsequent employment is an accurate view of the real life consequences we see from victims that have come forward. By contrast, Megyn’s back and forth on whether or not to come forward shows the other side of the choices that women are forced to make once deciding if they should fight back like others, even if they face the prospect of having those same struggles as a result. Megyn is an extremely successful reporter with aspirations set even higher, but do those aspirations outweigh both justice and any obligation she may have to those underneath her who do not have the access to power that she does, such as Kayla whose arc finds herself as the young professional woman just starting out and put in the uncomfortable position of being propositioned while seeking to work herself up the ladder. In a pivotal moment, Megyn is confronted by a subordinate with this question and the issue in general speaks to the conundrum women in the workplace are faced with as a result of impropriety. The lengths that we see Megyn have to go through in order to provide herself with cover while trying to address Ailes’ behavior will drive home for many in the audience just how disparate and unfair sexual harassment cases and their fallout are for women as opposed to the men who harass them, despite one side being the victimized.
Charlize Theron completely transforms herself into Megyn Kelly in both appearance and sound. It would be completely possible to not realize it is Theron in the role if you are unaware going into the film, a testament to her performance and that of Bombshell’s makeup and styling team. Theron does the majority of the heavy lifting here and elevates the film with just her presence alone. John Lithgow also performs well as Roger Ailes and prevents a character that could have easily descended into caricature from doing so. Bombshell does a good job of displaying his misdeeds and poor conduct without turning Ailes into a cartoonish villain and Lithgow’s acting assists with this success.
Bombshell presents a well-rounded picture of sexual harassment at every stage of a woman’s professional development and the negative effect it has on her ability to do her job. While the character of Kayla Pospisil is not based on a real person as Megyn Kelly and Gretchen Carlson obviously are, the type of woman she represents, young, idealistic, and hurt and confused at her treatment deserved a seat at this table and for her experience and voice to be portrayed in a film such as this. The ensemble cast performs well with the material they are given, in particular Charlize Theron who deserves all the awards consideration she has received as a result. Still, despite its accurate portrayal of sexual harassment, Bombshell is missing just a bit of the compelling threads in a film that make it feel engaging and less of a textbook depiction of an important issue. Perhaps it’s because it attempts to tell four people’s stories in under two hours, but the hooks just aren’t there to elevate it from a quality and important film to a great one. Despite this, Bombshell is still a worthwhile watch and provides a voice to a subject the world could stand to examine more than it has.
Image: Lionsgate
