‘Scoop’: Tedious film about tenacious journalists and a tactless royal
"Scoop" dramatises the events surrounding the BBC's "Newsnight" team securing a highly anticipated interview with Prince Andrew in 2019. During this time, Andrew faced mounting pressure to address his controversial association with notorious sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein. In an effort to address the situation, he agreed to an exclusive interview with seasoned broadcaster Emily Maitlis.
While the outcome of the interview was widely televised and thus lacked suspense, the film offers fresh insights into the British monarchy's public relations strategies and the inner workings of BBC journalism as both parties prepare for the interview.
"Scoop" is led by a powerful female cast. Billy Piper delivers a compelling performance as Sam McAlister, interview producer of "Newsnight", portrays a character who is both empowering and vulnerable. Gillian Anderson excels as Emily Maitlis, the interviewer, whose role gains significance as the story unfolds. Keeley Hawes portrays Andrew's private assistant, Amanda Thirsk, negotiating with McAlister to secure the interview, while Rufus Sewell impressively embodies the bumbling, unempathetic Prince Andrew, skillfully capturing his body language and demeanour.
The most astounding revelation from "Scoop" is the PR campaign used by the royal officials, as well as their astounding lack of experience and vision. When Sam initially gets in touch with Amanda at the beginning of the movie, hoping to smooth things over for a possible interview, Amanda's only tactic is to try to ride out the storm, not realising it's much more serious than she can imagine. Amanda hopes that some off-the-record meetings and vague comments will solve the problem but the damage is too big to be swept under the rug.
At Buckingham Palace, presenter Emily Maitlis sat opposite the Prince and asked him questions on a variety of subjects, including his lifelong friendship with sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. What happened over the next hour is still regarded as one of the biggest train wrecks in contemporary media. As the interviewer deftly let him speak rather than interrupting or bombarding him with too many questions, he dug himself a grave by revealing all kinds of information. In the film, you can see when Maitlis is holding back, noting all the openings that Andrew gives her and how she picks and chooses when to go after him and when to let him ramble.
After the interview was aired, people were flabbergasted at how the BBC managed to get this interview with Andrew where he mangled his own reputation beyond repair. "Scoop" is primarily interested in telling the tale of how "Newsnight" was able to get Prince Andrew for an interview, and it wants to emphasise how important investigative journalism is.
The film does not pull the thread on how this interview impacted the careers of McAlister and Maitlis, the state of journalism afterwards, and the lack of criminal consequences for the Prince. There was an implication that this interview led McAlister to prove her worth which was disingenuous. She was not an outsider in the newsroom who was looked down on as the tabloid gal in a serious profession. In reality, she was already a success in her own right with a long career of landing big interviews.
However, it is commendable how the writers managed to show how her tenacity and intuition worked wonders when it came to chasing leads that everyone else thought were dead ends. Her instinct has her combing through the strands of the decade-long Epstein controversy, which still threatened to tarnish Prince Andrew's reputation. She pursues several leads and cleverly negotiates with Andrew's top aide to land the interview.
Unfortunately, the survivors of Epstein's gruesome acts of trafficking are ignored in this film. Perhaps, the writers intended to not reach for the stars by portraying anything outside of the interview itself but that made for a rather boring and slow-paced film. Sadly, there aren't high stakes despite the brief moments of tension when we are left to wonder how McAlister will rise above her snooty colleagues and go against the Prince.
It may woefully lack any real drama and suspense but Netflix made the right decision to make this story a movie rather than turning it into a limited series so the audience would keep using the streaming service for more time. Amazon will release a limited series consisting of three episodes on this narrative arc as well, starring Ruth Wilson as Maitlis and Michael Sheen as Andrew.
The Netflix film provides an engrossing depiction of the complex waltz between powerful authoritarians and the media following a scandal. It skilfully handles the complications of journalism, desperation, and ethics with a talented cast and an action-packed story. It was entertaining to watch The "Newsnight" crew using the Palace's weaknesses– which they figured out during each meeting– against them.