For some people the idea of being a journalist is basically interviewing people and meeting deadlines. However, Russell Crowe shows that journalists can also behave like James Bond in the suspense movie “”State of Play.””

“”State of Play”” opens up with a man running for his life with a briefcase. He hides behind a trashcan and thinks he is safe, but when he goes to leave, he is shot and killed. The killer walks over and takes the briefcase. The movie then introduces the audience to Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck), a U.S. Congressman who is heading towards a bright future for his party, whose primary concern is defense spending. However, Stephen receives news that his research assistant has been killed. Cal McAffrey (Crowe) is assigned to the story and begins to do a little digging with rookie reporter Della Frye (Rachel McAdams). They uncover truths that were never meant to be discovered and it looks as though reporting this story could mean death.

I particularly like how there were a lot of shots of the inside of The Globe’s office because it showed more of what it’s really like to be a journalist. Crowe does a good job at portraying the laid back journalist who always has a quick comeback for everything. He would probably make a very good reporter. Jeff Daniels is great at playing the cold hearted representative of the political party. However it is very weird to see Daniels go from being a goof ball in “”Dumb and Dumber”” to being this emotionless character. Also, playing the ruthless editor of The Globe is Helen Mirren whose previous works include playing Nicolas Cage’s mom in “”National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets”” and Queen Elizabeth II in “”The Queen””. McAdams also adds flare to the movie by portraying the persistent rookie reporter. In a way it was more of a personal connection because she was so anxious to jump into reporting that she really didn’t know what to expect until she was thrown into the real deal. The movie also seems like a sort of criticism of the state of the world today: politicians profiting off the war in Iraq while innocent lives are lost. This movie packs so many twists and turns that sometimes I found myself lost. Despite that, the movie was very good and the ending still caught me by surprise.

Rating: ****