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MESSAGE IN THE MOVIES

He was an unlikely hero. Richard Jewell was a security guard hired to watch over a large crowd gathered on July 26, 1996 in the Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, Georgia for a late-night concert by Jack Mack and the Heart Attack. During his rounds Jewell noticed a suspicious person leave a backpack under a bench. He alerted the authorities, who identified a pipe bomb inside. Jewell risked his life to clear the area of people as much as he was able. When the bomb exploded 111 persons were injured and one person died. But Jewell’s quick thinking saved many, and he was celebrated in the national media as a hero.

Until he was considered a primary suspect by the FBI.

I remember well the televised coverage of the Olympics, the bombing and Richard Jewell’s celebrity. Without social media, folks were limited to what they heard on the four major networks and the daily news. But most of us simply followed whatever information we were spoon-fed by reporters and newscasters. As a nation, we embraced this unlikely hero and later doubted his story.

Richard Jewell chooses to give us a first-person perspective that begins years before the Olympics, when Jewell was working as an office assistant for the Small Business Association. As played wonderfully by Paul Walter Hauser, we meet a slow-thinking but conscientious worker who pays attention to small details to help others, including their favorite snacks. One of his regular stops is at the office of Watson Bryant (Rockwell), a company attorney. After leaving this post, Jewell tries some security positions but soon enters into difficult times as his sincere efforts to lay down the law cause friction as well as firings.

The “rent-a-cop” job at the Olympics seems like a great fit, until Kathy Scruggs (Olivia Wilde), an ambitious reporter, shares with her readers the FBI’s consideration of Richard Jewell as a person of interest. The turmoil that results follows Jewell to the modest apartment he shares with his mother (Kathy Bates). He remembers the lawyer who was kind to him years ago and contacts Bryant to help him out. The rest of the film depicts their growing relationship and the fight to prove him innocent – and the problems that occur when Jewell’s trust in others conflicts with the wisdom in keeping silent.

Everything in this film seems to click, including a great screenplay by Billy Ray and standout performances by Rockwell, Hauser and Bates. (The “villains” in the film are written a bit too broad – and unbelievable – for my taste, including Jon Hamm as an FBI investigator.) The depiction of the Olympic bombing is extremely well handled and Eastwood’s no nonsense, no frill direction is a perfect fit for this story.

In our current information age, rushing to judgement seems to be the default setting for most conversations, with fair trials is short supply for people in the lower rungs of power. Richard Jewell’s story is worth consideration, now more than ever.

The movie is great entertainment, with much humor and heart. It took me awhile to catch up with Richard Jewell, but this is one of my favorite films from 2019. Regrettably, right now the only place you can stream this is on HBO. You can always sanitize that library card, put on your face mask, and check out the DVD from the library.

Halo and Pitchfork Rating:

Four halos: A fact-based criminal investigation is combined with a touching story of advocacy and friendship.
Three pitchforks: Pervasive strong swearing, a brief scene of intense violence, sexual bargaining.

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