Scoop movie is based on a real-life TV interview with Prince Andrew of British Royalty. The BBC ‘Newsnight’ interview explored the friendship between Prince and Jeffrey Epstein.
Notably, Jeffrey Epstein was a convicted sex offender. Now, before we proceed further, it is worth mentioning that last year we reviewed the ‘Scoop‘ (2023) Hindi Series from India. Interestingly, both share the same title and are available on Netflix. Also, the ‘Scoop’ (title in both cases) means a news story reported by a news organization before its competitors. Thus, in a way, it demonstrates originality, importance, surprise, excitement, secrecy, etc.
“Scoop” Movie Does Try To Soften The Blow To The British Royalty After The Infamous Epstein-Scandal
Trailer: Scoop (2024) English Movie
Synopsis: Scoop (2024) English Movie
Inspired by real events, this fictional dramatization gives an insider account of how the women of Newsnight secured Prince Andrew’s infamous interview. Thus it is the inside account of the tenacious journalism that landed an earth-shattering interview. From the tension of producer Sam McAlister’s (Billie Piper) high-stakes negotiations with Buckingham Palace, all the way to Emily Maitlis’ (Gillian Anderson) jaw-dropping, forensic showdown with the Prince, this film takes us inside the story, with the women who would stop at nothing to get it. To get an interview this big, you have to be bold.
Spoiler Free Review: Scoop (2024) English Movie
The introduction
This real-life journalistic drama film is based on the book ‘Scoops: Behind the Scenes of the BBC’s Most Shocking Interviews’ by Sam McAlister. In a way, this film offers us a peek into the intricate dynamics of the British Royal Family and the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in the UK. Both the Royalty as well as the BBC are considered to be the two strong pillars of the British Establishment. But that infamous interview has changed the common people’s perceptions of them. Especially those folks, who are active social media users. So, they have their collective voices now, to even challenge the might of well-entrenched ones.
Esme Wren (Romola Garai): Well, why are you doing it (interview with the Prince)?
Emily Maitlis (Gillian Anderson): Monica Lewinsky... I feel like I let women down by not asking Clinton about her.
Esme Wren: Sex with that women was actually consensual.
Emily Maitlis: She was 21. He was the the president of the United States. He got his life back. She got decades of vicious misogyny.
What did we not like in this film?
We reviewed the ‘She Said‘ (2022) USA movie in the past, which also narrated the Journalistic scoop that exposed the misdeeds of serial predator Harvey Weinstein. That film had bold and more insightful drama about good journalism. More so in the present era, when the Mainstream (TV & Print) Media is more concerned about hiding the truth and building a (false) narrative. However, in this ‘Scoop’ film, we felt as if, they were playing it quite safe.
Almost everyone in the mainstream media circle knew the truth about an American financier and the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, but they kept mum. Maybe, none of them wanted to offend the powerful. Given the harsh realities of life, where the rich and powerful, often get away even after committing the most heinous of crimes. So, maybe given the real-life constraints, we can not blame the writers for the weak script.
What did we like in this film?
The scandalous “Prince Andrew & the Epstein Scandal: The Newsnight Interview – BBC News” is available on YouTube. Now, we believe that the creative team behind this film has done a good job of recreating the story behind the interview. The tense atmosphere of the interview was remarkably recreated. After watching the said BBC interview, you realize that the entire ensemble cast has done a wonderful job.
As we said earlier, we loved the acting of Gillian Anderson (Emily Maitlis), Billie Piper (Sam McAlister), Rufus Sewell (Prince Andrew) and Keeley Hawes (Amanda Thirsk). And, not to forget that some of the dialogues are daring, realistic, thoughtful and hard-hitting, for example, the conversation before the interview, among the BBC team members. What is more creditworthy is the fact that almost all the characters are real people.
The conclusion
This movie tries to explore the tricky subject of power and accountability in modern times. So, it was heartening to see three women – Emily Maitlis (Gillian Anderson), Sam McAlister (Billie Piper), and Esme Wren (Romola Garai) joining hands and working tirelessly behind the scenes to bring the infamous interview. No doubt, given the ground realities, it is commendable that these three career women (in their 40s and 50s) achieved almost an improbable task. They even managed to bring influential British Prince Andrew (Rufus Sewell) down. But somehow it feels that this film does not tell the complete tale, as it softens the blow. Still, it is a scoop.
Rating:
| FM Rating | 3.60/5 |
| FM Short Comments | We loved the acting of the three actors – Gillian Anderson (Emily Maitlis), Billie Piper (Sam McAlister), and Rufus Sewell (Prince Andrew) in this biographical film. The rest of the ensemble cast has done a commendable job too. It narrates an important British Royalty tale. However, the script lacked the intense and insightful journalistic drama to keep us hooked. |
Posters:
Key Details:
| Genre | Biography, Drama |
| Original language | English (UK) |
| Duration | 1 hour 42 minutes |
| Writers | Samantha McAlister, Peter Moffat & Geoff Bussetil |
| Director | Philip Martin |
| Taglines | One Interview Can Change Everything |
| Cast | Gillian Anderson (Emily Maitlis), Billie Piper (Sam McAlister), Rufus Sewell (Prince Andrew), Romola Garai (Esme Wren), Keeley Hawes (Amanda Thirsk), Richard Goulding (Stewart Maclean), Connor Swindells (Jae Donnelly), Jordan Kouamé (Freddy), Alex Waldmann (Jason Stein), Colin Wells (Jeffrey Epstein), etc. |
| Network | Netflix |
Posters and Featured Images of the Scoop (2024) English Movie are courtesy of Netflix.