The Trial of the Chicago 7 mini review (Exclusive Series)

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (Facebook Exclusive Series)

Initial release date: September 25, 2020

Studios: Netflix Paramount Pictures DreamWorks Cross Creek Pictures

Tagline: In 1968, democracy refused to back down.

Plot: In 1969, seven people were charged by the federal government with conspiracy and more, arising from the protests at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.

Cast

Eddie Redmayne (Amazon’s The Aeronauts) - Tom Hayden

Alex Sharp (The Hustle) - Rennie Davis

Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat 2) - Abbie Hoffman

Jeremy Strong (The Gentlemen) - Jerry Rubin

John Carroll Lynch (Netflix’s The Highwaymen) - David Dellinger

Yahya Adbul-Mateen II (Us; Aquaman) - Bobby Seale

Mark Rylance (Ready Player One) - William Kunstler

Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Netflix’s Project Power) - Richard Schultz

Ben Shankman - Leonard Weinglass

J.C. MacKenzie (The Hunt) - Thomas Foran

Frank Langella (Captain Fantastic) - Judge Hoffman

Danny Flaherty (Netflix’s The Meyerowitz Stories) - John Froines

Noah Robbins (Netflix’s The Week Of) - Lee Weiner

John Doman (Cold Pursuit) - John Mitchell

Michael Keaton (Dumbo) - Ramsey Clark

Kelvin Harrison Jr. (Luce) - Fred Hampton

Writer/director: Aaron Sorkin (Molly’s Game; Steve Jobs; Moneyball; The Social Network)

Rated R for language throughout, some violence, bloody images and drug use (129 min)

‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ is a truly solid drama and is one of the BEST movies I have recently seen. This incredible feature about one of the most well-known trials in decades is quite informative and this historical drama is an absolute must see by everyone!

The performances that are shown throughout the drama are very compelling. Sacha Baron Cohen definitely steals the show as Abbie Hoffman. His acting in this tense drama shows he can do more than his outlandish characters (like Borat). Indeed, during most of his dramatic moments, he still has a few hilarious quips scattered throughout. And, the most dis-liked individual is likely the judge himself, Julius Hoffman. Even during the end credits where it’s shown what happened to the Chicago Seven and the lawyers, it’s revealed that 78% of Chicago trial lawyers gave Hoffman a rating of “Unqualified” in a bi-annual survey.

If you haven’t had the chance to watch ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7,’ I highly recommend that you do! This historical movie has been nominated for several awards and, surprisingly, only won a few of them.

Here are some interesting tidbits about ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’:

• Sacha Baron Cohen admitted that he was “terrified” of having to do an American accent for the film. He had used a few different variations of the accent before for comedic reasons, but never for a dramatic role. He knew the real Abbie Hoffman had a unique voice, having a Massachusetts accent but also having gone to school in CA, and was worried he would “sound wrong.” Sorkin (the writer/director) had to reassure him that the role was “not an impersonation, but an interpretation,” which Cohen claimed didn’t help much.

• In regards to the film’s timely subject matter in 2020, Sorkin described the film as being more about modern day then the 1960s. He explained that, “The script didn’t change to mirror the times. The times changed to mirror the script.”

• When Spielberg was attached to direct, he was planning on meeting with Heath Ledger to discuss the role of Tom Hayden. Ledger passed away the day before he was scheduled to meet with Spielberg. Spielberg also wanted Will Smith to play Bobby Seale.

• The film was initially slated to be a wide theatrical release before Paramount sold the distribution rights to Netflix for $56 million due to the pandemic, amid a bidding war that also included Amazon, Apple and Hulu, and the promise that it would still be released in theaters. Netflix kept the original release date for a limited theatrical release.

• Paul Greengrass (Jason Bourne; Captain Phillips; News of the World) and Ben Stiller were rumored to be in talks to direct, since the 2007 Writers Guild strike delayed Spielberg’s iteration.

• Upon its digital release, it was the second most streamed film over his debut weekend, which IndieWire called “higher than usual for a more serious Netflix title.” It finished in 10th the following weekend, In November, Variety reported the film was the 8th most watched straight to streaming title of 2020 up to that point.

• In March 2021, Variety reported the film was among Netflix’s most watched Oscar nominated films.