Trumbo

PG-13

Released Jun 27, 2008

1 hr. 36 min.

Documentary

List

84%

55 Reviews

Tomatometer

78%

25,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Like the protagonist of his classic film "Spartacus," leftist screenwriter Dalton Trumbo has a rebellious streak. During the McCarthy era, Trumbo refuses to cooperate with the House Un-American Activities Committee and is sentenced to 11 months in prison. Blacklisted in Hollywood, Trumbo resorts to writing scripts under a pseudonym. The film uses archival footage, interviews and actors reading Trumbo's brilliant letters and scripts to construct a portrait of an uncompromising artist.

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Critics Consensus

Trumbo celebrates the life and work of blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo with measures of humor and sadness.

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Audience Member

Cranston was great but overall the movie was middling.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/25/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Basado en la obra de teatro del mismo nombre, "Trumbo" es un documental dirigido por Peter Askin acerca de Douglas Trumbo, uno de los mejores guionistas en la historia de Hollywood, quien vió opacada su carrera cuando termina siendo víctima de la cacería de brujas liderada por el Senador Joseph McCarthy en los años 50 por su vinculación al partido comunista. La vida y obra de Trumbo se intercala aquí con la lectura de varias de sus cartas, a cargo de actores como Michael Douglas, Liam Neeson, Karen Allen y Paul Giamatti, entre otros.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/25/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Basado en la obra de teatro del mismo nombre, "Trumbo" es un documental dirigido por Peter Askin acerca de Douglas Trumbo, uno de los mejores guionistas en la historia de Hollywood, quien vió opacada su carrera cuando termina siendo víctima de la cacería de brujas liderada por el Senador Joseph McCarthy en los años 50 por su vinculación al partido comunista. La vida y obra de Trumbo se intercala aquí con la lectura de varias de sus cartas, a cargo de actores como Michael Douglas, Liam Neeson, Karen Allen y Paul Giamatti, entre otros.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/24/23

Full Review

Audience Member

"Trumbo" is suffering from an ill conceived distribution plan. Allowing the energy and buzz of the strong initial reaction to wither away in five theaters while fifty other features are playing in hundreds. I believe in getting their furstest with the mostest.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Review: I actually enjoyed this documentary which showed how hard it was for screenwriters during the hunt for communists in America. I liked Dalton Trumbo's clever way of writing, which was truly wasted during this period. He wrote movies like Spartacus and in some of his films he had to go under a different name, even though he did win a couple of Oscars, which one of them he couldn't collect. The director of this documentary cleverly used great actors to narrate some of Trumbo's story through his own writings, which shows how Trumbo used words in a extraordinary way. The only problem that I found with the film was that it doesn't really show what movies Trumbo made or his actually contribution to Hollywood, which is a shame because he was a highly talented individual. The movie concentrates on the negative side of his life more than the whole writing process which would have made a better documentary but it's definitely worth a watch just to see how far we have come in the movie world. Watchable! Round-Up: I must admit, it was the list of actors that drew me to this documentary and not the subject matter, but after watching it the thing that I enjoyed the most was the way that Trumbo wrote and his life story. The actors do portray his story well and because of the fact that they are all A-Listers, it shows how much Trumbo was highly respected. It's was good to see Kirk Douglas and Donald Sutherland, who have actually worked with Trumbo, so they were talking about there experiences with this great screen writer. We could do with a person like Trumbo in this day and age because there is a lack of scripts in Hollywood which are original and classed as classics. I recommend this documentary to people who are interested in the writing process of making a film during the blacklist period. 5/10

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/18/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Screenwriter Dalton Trumbo was arguably the most famous of the "Unfriendly Ten" who were blacklisted in 1947 in the first flash of America's Communist witch-hunts. Seems today somewhat outrageous and comical. But sadly History still continues its search for creative thinkers who go against the grain and think for themselves. The Documentary cherishes Trumbo's memories through letters, pictures, and interviews by beloved family and friends including some of Hollywood's biggest names. The real shame is preventing talent from shining!

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/04/23

Full Review

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Peter Askin

Director

Joan Allen

Actor

Brian Dennehy

Actor

Michael Douglas

Actor

Paul Giamatti

Actor

Nathan Lane

Actor

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Owen Gleiberman

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: B+

Sep 7, 2011

Full Review

Jonathan F. Richards

Film.com

The transporting power of this experience is in the passionate and almost outlandishly eloquent verbal expression Trumbo poured into his correspondence, and the vividly American principles he defends.

Nov 10, 2008

Full Review

John Anderson

Newsday

The film is an enlightening recap of '50s Red Scare politics, and a parade of actors giving meaningful, earnest readings of Trumbo's speeches and letters.

Rated: 2.5/4

Oct 18, 2008

Full Review

David Walsh

World Socialist Web Site

The commitment of the performers involved obviously speaks to their concerns about present-day events.

Feb 13, 2021

Full Review

Al Alexander

The Patriot Ledger

The silver lining to 13 years of being blacklisted are all those incredible letters that we can now enjoy for their deft but basic truths.

Rated: B+

May 26, 2013

Full Review

Bill Gibron

PopMatters

Like the great artist he is Trumbo's work speaks as loudly today as it did 50 years ago. Perhaps we should all listen.

Rated: 4/5

Sep 13, 2009

Full Review

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Synopsis

Like the protagonist of his classic film "Spartacus," leftist screenwriter Dalton Trumbo has a rebellious streak. During the McCarthy era, Trumbo refuses to cooperate with the House Un-American Activities Committee and is sentenced to 11 months in prison. Blacklisted in Hollywood, Trumbo resorts to writing scripts under a pseudonym. The film uses archival footage, interviews and actors reading Trumbo's brilliant letters and scripts to construct a portrait of an uncompromising artist.

Director: Peter Askin
Screenwriter: Christopher Trumbo
Distributor: Samuel Goldwyn Company
Production Co: Filbert Steps, Red Envelope Entertainment, Safehouse Pictures, Samuel Goldwyn Films, Reno Productions
Rating: PG-13 (A Sex Related Commentary)
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 27, 2008, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 10, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $108.3K

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