Team Jonah Hill with James Franco and you’re in for a laugh-a-minute at the movies, right?
WRONG!
What we’ve got instead with TRUE STORY is a hard hitting, psychological drama of a psychopath and a redemption seeking reporter whose identity he stole.
It’s a true story…and a bizarre one.
Jonah Hill plays ex-New York Times reporter Michael Finkel whose latest expose of modern day slavery in Africa backfires. Seems he “enhanced” it a bit to make it come across—well, sexier.
“You have a great future ahead of you. Just not here.”
If that’s not bad enough, someone in Oregon accused of murdering his entire family, has assumed Finkel’s name and identity but gets caught in Mexico. That stranger is Christian Longo played by James Franco.
Now what?
Jonah Hill’s character sees it as an opportunity by tracking down the Franco bad guy and getting into his head. All in hopes of ending up with a sellable story—or better yet, getting a great book out of it.
After that it’s a lot of mind bending between these two since we as viewers (or Jonah Hill) never really know for sure what’s true and what’s manufactured B.S. to lead everyone involved astray.
DID Franco kill his wife and three kids?
That’s what the trial that follows attempts to uncover. And just as importantly: WHY?
So what of the book about this macabre story and journalist Jonah Hill’s redemption?
All part of a perverse cat-and-mouse relationship of murder, love, deceit—and MAYBE redemption.
Truth can sometimes be more bizarre than fiction. If you don’t believe it, then check out TRUE STORY also featuring Felicity Jones. It opens this weekend in limited runs and scores a C+.
JACK GOES TO THE MOVIES airs Friday mornings at 6:40 a.m. and 8:40 a.m. on 98.1 FM, KMBZ and anytime on Facebook.
Franco is just weird enough to pull off playing the role. Why not a better score?