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The trial between Hulk Hogan and Gawker Media pitted privacy rights against freedom of the press, and raised important questions about how big money can silence media.
This documentary is arguably one-sided, because it posits the idea that the media is being irrevocably harmed. No one is interviewed that strongly suggests the activities happening are a good thing. So if "fair and balanced" is what you are looking for, this may not be for you.
But if you are on the side of press freedom, this will provide you with plenty of fuel. We hear about the Las Vegas newspaper who is purchased by a man deserving of media criticism... and by buying the newspaper, he has effectively eliminated the watchdogs who keep him in check.
The first half of the film is the destruction of Gawker Media by Hulk Hogan and Peter Thiel. This was a case I followed closely at the time, and could not believe the outcome. But this documentary shows things that were even worse than I knew at the time. The bizarre courtroom testimony of Hulk Hogan is just absurd. He bases his entire case on the idea that things he says "in character" are very different from the real him. Which is crazy. An actor is not the same person as a character they play in a movie. But Terry Bollea is Hulk Hogan. There is not a clear line separating them.
score 9/10
gavin6942 23 June 2017
Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw3736899/ |
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