Good Night And Good Luck/Hamburger Hill/Pierrepoint DVD – Robert Downey Jr, Patricia Clarkson

Triple bill of heavyweight political dramas. The Oscar-nominated ‘Good Night, and Good Luck’ (2005) is directed by, written by and starring George Clooney. The year is 1953, television is still in its infancy and the esteemed broadcast journalist, Edward R. Murrow (David Strathairn), anchors the popular news documentary show, ‘See it Now’, on CBS. Murrow, alongside producer Fred Friendly (Clooney), oversees a show that reports on the news items of the day. He has a dedicated crew of reporters that includes Don Hewitt (Grant Heslov), Joe Wershba (Robert Downey Jr.), Palmer Williams (Tom McCarthy), Jesse Zousmer (Tate Donovan), John Aaron (Reed Diamond), Charlie Mack (Robert John Burke) and Eddie Scott (Matt Ross). All these men will become broadcast legends, but right now, their careers are just beginning. With the threat of Communism creating an air of paranoia in the United States and Senator Joseph McCarthy exploiting those fears, Murrow and Friendly decide to take a stand and challenge McCarthy, exposing him for the fearmonger he is. ‘Hamburger Hill’ (1987) is a fictionalised account of the battle to secure Hill 937 (aka Hamburger Hill), an objective which resulted in one of the bloodiest conflicts of the Vietnam War. Focusing on the exploits of 3rd Squad, 1st Platoon, Bravo Company of the 101st Airborne Division, it shows the extreme duress suffered by the soldiers involved, as they do their best to win a pointless prize in a war being fought without popular support and which – like the attempt to secure the hill itself – is destined to end in failure. Written by John Carabatsos, who himself served with the 1st Air Cavalry in 1968-69. ‘Pierrepoint’ (2005) is the dramatic true-life story of Albert Pierrepoint (Timothy Spall), Britain’s most notorious hangman. Following in the footsteps of his father and uncle before him, Albert joins the ‘family business’ in 1934. Living a secret life as a master hangman, as well as a humble grocery deliveryman and loyal husband, Pierrepoint’s reputation as the most highly regarded executioner in the land results in him executing some of Britain’s most infamous murderers including Derek Bentley and Ruth Ellis, and also the Nazi war criminals convicted at the Nuremberg Trials. But the media coverage from these shatters Pierrepoint’s closely guarded anonymity, turning him into a minor celebrity.

Set Comprises: Good Night And Good Luck (2005): Good Night And Good Luck George Clooney’s second film as director takes place during the early days of broadcast journalism in 1950s America chronicling the real-life conflict between television newsman Edward R. Murrow (Strathairn) and Senator Joseph McCarthy with the House Un-American Activities Committee. With a desire to report the facts and enlighten the public Murrow and his dedicated staff – headed by his producer Fred Friendly (Clooney) and Joe Wershba (Downey Jr.) in the CBS newsroom – defy corporate and sponsorship pressures to examine the lies and scaremongering tactics perpetrated by McCarthy during his communist ‘witch-hunts’. A very public feud develops when the Senator responds by accusing the anchor of being a communist. In this climate of fear and reprisal the CBS crew carries on and their tenacity will prove historic and monumental. Hamburger Hill (1987): The men of Bravo Company are facing a battle that’s all uphill… up Hamburger Hill. Fourteen war-weary soldiers are battling for a mud-covered mound of earth so named because it chews up soldiers like chopped meat. They are fighting for their country their fellow soldiers and their lives. War is hell but this is worse. Hamburger Hill tells it the way it was the way it really was. It’s a raw gritty and totally unrelenting dramatic depiction of one of the fiercest battles of America’s bloodiest war. Dodge the gunfire. Get caught behind enemy lines. Go into battle beside the brave young men who fought and died. Feel their desperation and futility. This happened. Hamburger Hill – war at its worst men at their best. Pierrepoint (2005): Pierrepoint is the gripping and dramatic true-life story of Albert Pierrepoint Britain’s most notorious hangman. Following in the footsteps of his father and uncle before him Albert joins the ‘family business’ in 1934. Living a secret life as a master hangman as well as a humble grocery deliveryman and loyal husband Pierrepoint’s reputation as the most highly regarded executioner in the land results in him executing some of Britain’s most infamous murderers including Derek Bentley and Ruth Ellis and also the Nazi war criminals convicted at the Nuremberg Trials. But the media coverage from these shatters Pierrepoint’s closely guarded anonymity turning him into a minor celebrity. As his two lives collide and public opinion turns against capital punishment Pierrepoint troubled by his notoriety is ready to give it all up but fate has other plans in store for him…