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Leads don't bring 'True Story' to life
"True Story" (R, Fox) is based on the case of ex-New York Times correspondent Michael Finkel, who was disgraced after fabricating elements of a 2001 story, then learned that his identity had been appropriated by a criminal. It has all the elements of tricky cat-and-mouse psychological drama, but writer/director Rupert Goold, in his feature debut, fails to capture the chemistry and complexity necessary to make this grim tale anything more than a lurid anecdote. Part of the reason "True Story" feels so inert is its lead actors: Jonah Hill, playing Finkel with muted, wide-eyed vulnerability, and James Franco, as the skittishly evasive criminal, fail to generate any interpersonal sparks.
Washington Post
