We’ve all told them — those little lies that begin harmlessly enough, but snowball to epic proportions when we try to cover our tracks after suspicion has been aroused. And once the snowballing starts, there is no stopping it until there are no more lies left to tell.
This is what happened to writer Stephen Glass in 1998. As an associate editor for the prestigious magazine The New Republic, Glass fabricated 27 of the 41 stories he wrote for the magazine. The film “Shattered Glass” tells the story of this charming and bright journalist as he first wins the loyalty of The New Republic staff and is eventually exposed by an online news site.
In the beginning of the film, Glass, played by Hayden Christensen, seems to be at the top of his game. He’s a 25-year-old reporter for The New Republic, the “official in-flight magazine of Air Force One.” His co-workers love him. Editors at other magazines such as Harper’s and Rolling Stone offer him freelance work. Glass even gets accepted to Georgetown University’s law school.
However, the very thing that makes him popular — his fascinating stories, with colorful leads and too-good-to-be-true details — also becomes his undoing. One of his stories, “Hack Heaven,” catches the eye of Adam Penenberg (portrayed by Steve Zahn), who writes for the Web site Forbes Digital Tool. After Penenberg is chastised by his boss for getting scooped by Glass and his “Hack Heaven,” he does a few simple Internet searches for Jukt Micronics, the software company mentioned in the article. The searches turn up no matches for a supposedly giant software company. From here, things begin to crumble for Glass.
Hayden Christensen and Peter Sarsgaard star in ‘Shattered Glass.’ Christensen plays Stephen Glass, a journalist who fabricates stories.
The movie does a praiseworthy job of tackling journalistic integrity without all The New York Times/Jayson Blair brouhaha of this past spring. It reveals how easy it is for people to be swayed by charm and also how quickly they panic under pressure. The cast — which also includes Hank Azaria, Peter Sarsgaard, Rosario Dawson and the always remarkable Chloe Sevigny — delivers nuanced performances that contribute to this great newsroom drama.
“Shattered Glass” opens Friday at the Bijou Art Cinemas, located at 492 E. 13th Ave.
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Her opinions do not necessarily represent those of the Emerald.