Attentat in Birmingham

Very intelligent, thoughtful re-telling of the true story of six men who where put away in the UK for a bombing in Ireland they had nothing to do with, and how journalists finally got the case re-examined.

This reminded me in tone of a low budget 'All the President's Men', the focus being not on the men imprisoned, nor the real culprits, but on the slow, difficult uphill climb journalists faced in putting together the facts, with the police, politicians and even the courts standing in their way.

While a very good film, it somehow lacked the power of the classic "President's Men". Sometimes these recreations felt a little more theatrical, the acting a bit more self-conscious, the bad guys a bit moustache twirling. And John Hurt's character as the main investigative force felt a bit one note in his dogged approach. Not the fault of this very fine actor, who brings as much life to the character as possible, but seemingly the script, which has a few too many scenes of Hurt in a room with someone, pressing them for details in a similar way. I would guess real life journalists have to vary their tactics more depending on the situation.

But carping aside, this is another in the body of solid films that investigate what can happen when police and politics decide it's more important to convict someone, then to convict the right one.