“People need stories,” Larry Lamb (Jack O’Connell) says at one point in Ink, and that feels like the entire thesis of the movie. And in so many ways, of the current political climate. We’ve gone far beyond telling facts and into telling stories, and stories have a lot of power in shaping people’s opinions. If you’re going to believe anyone, believe the man who made the British tabloid The Sun what it is today.
The movie, directed by Danny Boyle and adapted from playwright James Graham’s recounting of how The Sun basically launched tabloid culture in the UK, is a fast-paced, intriguing look at the behind-the-scenes of journalism. It’s also a very obvious warning about the dangers of pushing ethics out of the profession, and choosing to take a side in the stories you’re supposed to be reporting on without bias.
It all starts when Rupert Murdoch (Guy Pearce) convinces newspaper editor Larry Lamb to oversee his newly acquired daily, The Sun. Murdoch wants to sell more, and Lamb wants to be respected. Lamb’s solution? Cover topics no one else is covering, in ways no one else dares to. It works, almost too well.
The mechanics of how The Sun becomes so popular are really well told, and th...