Snowden directed by Oliver Stone follows the real story of Edward Snowden, a member of the U.S. army who also worked for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and National Security Agency (NSA), and his choice to expose the illegal mass surveillance by the NSA. Through a series of flashbacks, the movie captures the essence of urgency felt by Snowden and the emotional toll his decision to release classified NSA information took on his life.

Despite being based off a true story that many viewers know the outcome of, Snowden is full of suspense. The movie begins in a Hong Kong hotel room, as Snowden is being interviewed by Lauren Poitras and Glenn Greenwald, a documentary filmmaker, and journalist respectively.  This is set in 2013, the year the story of mass surveillance broke. As Snowden’s past is explained, many scenes end up back in the hotel room.

The flashback based style definitely enhances the intensity of the story. But it does make an already complicated story somewhat harder to understand. It makes it necessary for the viewer to pay extra attention when and where each scene is taking place. It is not detrimental to the quality of the movie, but viewers be warned: Snowden requires a certain level of concentration.

An important part of the movie is the personal relationships of Snowden. His personal life mostly consists of his relationship with a girl he met online. His different jobs cause some rough patches and seeing how his life with government jobs affects his relationships causes viewers to sympathize with Snowden.

The story of Snowden can be tough to understand but for the most part, the movie takes the complexity of the story and runs with it, creating a chilling film that educates the public in an entertaining way. For those who enjoy political thrillers, Snowden is sure to be a good watch.

Rating:

⭐⭐⭐⭐∙

4 out of 5 stars