Snowden-Rated R

Oliver Stone’s action-packed drama featuring The Dark Knight Rises’ Joseph Gordon-Levitt (as Edward Snowden) tells the story of National Security Agency tattle-tale. He meets with Laura Poitras (The Fighter’s Melissa Leo) and Glenn Greenwald (Zachary Quinto, also Spock from the Star Trek franchise) in a mall to begin his take down.

The movie depicts what is seemingly an accurate retelling of Snowden’s side of the story, but I would recommend some research beforehand. The story is lightened with moments from his love affair with Lindsay Mills (played by The Fault in Our Stars’ lead actress Shailene Woodley). It jumps back and forth from Snowden’s time with Laura and Glenn to the events leading up to his tell-all.

Seeing Edward and Lindsay’s relationship develop and grow wasn’t just for the cute factor, but it also offered the audience a chance to breathe between intense scenes. I started to feel anxiety after witnessing how easily the NSA can learn all about me. This movie has a star-studded cast, from Nicholas Cage (Benhamin Franklin Gates in National Treasure) playing Snowden’s ally and fellow nerd Hank Forrester and Rhys Ifans (The Lizard/Dr. Curt Connors in The Amazing Spider-Man) as Corbin O’Brien to Tom Wilkinson (Carmine Falcone in Batman Begins) as journalist Ewen MacAskill.

Ifans adds a shadowy and mysterious feel to Snowden’s mentor that makes the plot that much thicker, while Cage’s character is fatherly and funny. The three characters who helped Snowden blow the whistle (Wilkinson, Quinto, and Leo) are portrayed ad supportive and even border on protective of Edward. The film is heart-stopping at points and heart-warming at others. Despite the brief nudity and language, Snowden is a wonderfully entertaining and informative piece that leaves you wondering whether or not your house has been bugged. I would definitely recommend this movie, especially if you like non-fiction.