When it comes to war, the cost of human life is the only thing to consider. That’s what Marie Colvin would want you to know. A Private War is an engaging and often terrifying look at the work of one of the world’s foremost war reporters and several of the conflicts she covered until her death in Homs, Syria in 2012.
She wasn’t just any journalist. After graduating from Yale, Colvin worked for United Press International before making the move to a British newspaper (The Sunday Times) where she became the Middle East correspondent. She was the first journalist to interview Muammar Gaddafi after American air-strikes hit Syria in 1986 and again during the Arab Spring in 2011. Colvin was drawn to conflict zones like a moth to a flame, repeatedly putting herself in harm’s way to tell the stories that others were too afraid to. During her coverage of the Sri Lankan Civil War in 2001, she lost her left eye when her convoy was attacked using a rocket-propelled grenade. Nonetheless, she still made her deadline. As a result of the attack, Colvin later suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder which required hospitalization. To say her credentials as a journalist were beyond reproach would be a grand understatement. She’s an icon and this film…her story…is long overdue.
Finding the right person for the role was going to be a challenge simply because Marie was an immensely talented, and almost equally as tortured, individual. Fortunately, Rosamund Pike’s portrayal was stellar; in many ways, it’s the finest work of her career. Capturing the complex duality of the character was no easy task but she brought remarkable zeal to the role. Bouncing off the walls with intense passion and wavering in and out of depressive episodes is a fine line to walk but Pike played the balance with superb precision. I would have to think that she’s in line for her second Oscar nod for Best Actress (Gone Girl 2015) and it’ll be difficult to find a better performance, which punctuated an already strong 2018 for her. The 39-year-old actress is certainly a contender for my Actor of the Year award.
Make no mistake about it, this was a war movie: a fact not lost on Director Matthew Heinemen. His background as a documentary filmmaker gives him a certain kinship with Colvin, translating powerfully to this story and the intensity simply fumes off the screen. Showcasing it as such gave the film gravitas it may not have had otherwise and the filming locations were alarmingly real. Blown-out buildings and war-torn towns in Jordan gave it the kind of authenticity you simply can’t buy. It’s up close and personal with the subject in some precarious positions abroad and voyeuristic when it came to her personal life at home. This was an exceptional effort for a young filmmaker tackling his first full-length feature film. With help from editor Nick Fenton, the film made it under the critical two-hour mark but still felt like a complete and rich story experience at a reasonable pace. Best Director is a lofty goal but, after watching the film, it’s impossible to deny him entry to that conversation. He’s been well known and respected as a documentarian (City of Ghosts was my Must-See Documentary of 2017) but this will open the door into features and we should all be excited to see what he does next.
Heinemen usually handles all his own cinematography but part of the transition to feature production involved handing over the keys to the camera. Fortunately, he gave the reigns to the masterful Robert Richardson; one of the true OGs of cinematography. He’s worked with some of the best directors in the business and on some of the very best films over the past 30-plus years in the industry. Keeping the docu-style feel was an important aspect of telling this story and Richardson’s understanding of scene setting played a key role in bringing the story to life. Production Designer Sophie Becher helped set the table and there’s a lot of wide shots used for scene setting that add immeasurable subtext. Richardson’s use of natural source lighting, especially for nighttime shots, provided a truly unique backdrop for this film to unfold on. In a year filled with marvelous cinematography, this film is right there at the top of the heap.
When thinking of key supporting roles for this film, the first name that comes to mind isn’t “Christian Grey”. It’s not as though Jamie Dornan has never acted in anything other than the Fifty Shades franchise, but he certainly made his name on it. Both he and Dakota Johnson have since moved on to better, if not bigger, things and this was an important and transformative role for the Irish actor. Sporting a scruffy neckbeard and a thick, distinct accent, Dornan effectively shed his polish to play the war photographer Paul Conroy. He and Pike had strong chemistry as colleagues with a similar passion for the frontlines and, although they are not romantically involved, having that kind of friendship paid huge dividends for the narrative as a whole. Dornan aside, Jina Jay cast a strong group with Tom Hollander and Stanley Tucci in smaller supporting roles to ballast the film overall.
Arash Amel wrote the screenplay based on the 2012 Vanity Fair article “Marie Colvin’s Private War” by Marie Brenner. Amel doesn’t have a huge body of work. In fact, the only film that’s familiar is an off the radar, poorly received sci-fi thriller The Titan with Sam Worthington. However, he’s currently working on a remake of Starman so his work has shown enough promise to afford him opportunities. Since this screenplay is an adaptation, much of the foundation was already in place but capturing Colvin’s voice…her spirit…was essential to telling this story. The dialogue is passionate and meaningful, basically from start to finish. There isn’t a bunch of wasted time. All the relationships between the characters are tightly woven by their interactions and Amel tied it all together nicely.
A story such as this needs the right kind of music to build it up and H. Scott Salinas crafted some really powerful compositions to accompany the feature. His use of string instruments, I think I heard a harp in there as well, cultivated a slow intensity. A wave that could rise and crash over the audience at any given moment. There’s complementary piano to lift some of the heavier tones and give the music more fluidity across the entirety of the film. Eurythmics fans will be pleased to know that Annie Lennox provides an original song, “Requiem for a Private War”, that plays over the end credits. It’s a fitting close to a film rich in passion and emotion.
For one of the year’s best films, it’s still basically unknown. It entered wide release November 16th and hasn’t even grossed $1.5-million yet. Distributors Aviron Pictures haven’t really pushed it much either. I had only heard about it through familiar circles but, even as much as I go to the movies, I never once saw a trailer or a television spot for it. With the deluge of films coming out during December to make the final cut off for awards season, this will probably get lost in the shuffle as theaters make room for the bigger studio films. Hopefully, it will get more recognition as the screener copies begin to make the rounds with voters.
Recommendation: If you like Rosamund Pike, this is a must-see performance. Fans of war films should appreciate it as well but it’s atypical for the genre. This is one of the year’s best.