Nothing But The Truth (Rod Lurie, 2008): USA

Reviewed by Darryl Walden.  Viewed at the 2009 Santa Barbara Film Festival.

Nothing But The Truth, a thriller directed and written by Rod Lurie, begins with an assassination attempt on a sitting United States president that is reportedly traced to Venezuela and which triggers government retaliation.  Rachel Armstrong (Kate Beckinsale), a reporter of the Capital Sun-Times, a major Washington, DC newspaper writes a story that reveals the identity of  covert CIA operative Erica Van Doren (Vera Farminga), who ironically submitted a report to the White House that refuted Venezuelan involvement in the assassination attempt.  Once the story is published, the government demands that Rachel reveal the source of Van Doren’s CIA identity.

An ambitious special prosecutor, Patton Dubois (Matt Dillion) quickly pursues Rachel who refuses to bow, supported by her editor Bonnie (Angela Bassett).  A contempt hearing is swiftly arranged in a United States District Court before Judge Hall (Floyd Abrams).  Despite the First Amendment argument proffered  by Rachel’s attorney Albert Burnside (Alan Alda), Judge Hall cites Rachel with contempt and orders her confinement.  The suspense builds as to who the source is and why Rachel is so adamant about protecting him or her, and certainly in light of the hardships she encounters in jail.

The background of this story is rooted in true events which delve into two personnel from two presidential administrations: Judith Miller from the Clinton administration and Valerie Flame from George W. Bush’s. There is significance to the weighty issue of pitting the First Amendment against the Patriot Act.  The story heavily evokes the theme of contemporary professional women that seek to maintain personal integrity.

Yet, the narrative shows some disturbing contradictions.  Just as we admire Rachel for her integrity and preservation of career, she endures at the cost of her marriage and emotional trauma to her young son.  Rod Lurie creates a dual working mom motif between Rachel and Van Doren. Still, both tragically suffer rather than lend themselves to a timely resolution, which disturbed some viewers.

For example, following the screening, I encountered a woman that commutes between New York and California as an interior decorator who praised the film for the heroic manner Rachel maintained her professional integrity.  The woman also intimated that before encountering me, she argued with two older women that condemned Rachel for the destruction of her family life.

In the end, the woman and I agreed that Lurie’s attempt to juxtapose maternal instinct  with journalistic professionalism to protect a source was anything but the truth.