Reality
Sydney Sweeney stars as whistleblower Reality Winner in this compelling, quiet-spoken thriller based on dialogue taken from Winner's FBI interrogation
On 3 June, 2017, FBI agents appeared at the home of NSA translator Reality Winner to interrogate her about an information leak. Tina Salter’s film recreates the conversation that followed, largely in real-time and using dialogue taken exclusively from the FBI’s recording. It even puts their transcript on-screen at regular intervals to leave us in no doubt about the absolute accuracy of what we’re seeing.
As a result, Reality is essentially one long conversation between Winner (Sydney Sweeney) and FBI Agents Justin C. Garrick (Josh Hamilton) and R Wallace Taylor (Marchánt Davis), all three giving almost uncannily naturalistic performances as they recreate the real-life interview. The tension slowly builds as they dance around each other, trying to reveal as little as possible while maintaining an air of cheerful – if slightly awkward – cooperation. But with each revolution, it becomes clearer that one side here has all the information, and therefore all the power. In truth, we’ve been watching a predator circle its prey.
Reality makes for a compelling, quiet-spoken thriller, but its rigid adherence to factuality also leaves it a little boxed in, cutting it off from any greater truth about Winner’s story. A montage at the end whisks us through a brief discussion of her motives and the morality of her actions, but Reality is largely a film about the specific process by which Reality Winner was arrested, leaving the rest of her fascinating tale untouched.
Released 2 June by Vertigo; certificate 12A