A matter of ethics and patriotism. Great performances, intriguing movie.

Weird true story about a low level goverment contractor who has security clearance but may have taken certain classified documents home (that's a no-no!) I was very impressed by Sydney Sweeney and found the entire affair quite interesting. Upon finishing the film I did a little online research into the incident. Thumbs up.

La historia es interesante, las actuaciones son buenas, pero la película se queda corta, me imagino que por presupuesto y por apegarse a la historia real.

Why Are “Glitches” Essential in the World of “Truths” and “Interpretations”? By Carwan Dourandich Originally published in Etemaad Newspaper, Issue №5591 Reality, written and directed by Tina Satter, is an American mystery-thriller film that premiered at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival, where it was nominated for Best Film and Best Director. The central theme of Reality revolves around the concept of a “glitch in the system.” The director skillfully employs visual effects — more precisely, “glitches” — to challenge the notion of a “perfect” system or, in this case, to question the truthfulness of the film’s narrative itself. Satter deliberately censors essential information from the documents and dialogues in the film, forcing the audience to engage with the narrative, seeking to uncover the truth. These distortions — or “crashes” — are not accidental; rather, they are precisely timed and intentional disruptions that add layers of complexity to the storytelling. The presence of these visual crashes or glitches inherently directs the audience’s mind toward digital errors and viruses — entities capable of infiltrating enemy systems, accessing classified data, and exploiting it for their own advantage. Within the film’s framework, noise functions as a rupture between the filmmaker’s simulated narrative and the real story. The film reveals how a minor “noise” within the U.S. security system — Reality Winner — has caused a massive disruption, leading to unexpected events and unintended consequences within a seemingly “perfect, flawless, uninterrupted, and well-orchestrated” system. This small noise was so catastrophic for the government that it fostered the perception that the system was fundamentally dysfunctional. At the same time, the filmmaker subtly suggests that the successful transmission of information or truth necessitates noise — figures like Reality Winner. In other words, without noise, no precise information can exist. To the public, the system’s functionality appears as a “mystery,” but interference from noise unravels this enigma. In this scenario, The Intercept news agency plays the role of a mediator for the noise — acting as a noise itself within the United States. However, unlike Reality Winner, this news outlet, leveraging its media influence, is capable of shifting an object away from its conventional and seamless discourse, stripping meanings from established concepts and words, and generating new interpretations. When, in certain parts of the film, Reality Winner — or at other times, the police officers — briefly but unnaturally disappear through a visual glitch, the audience is momentarily thrust into a void of meaning. These empty, incomprehensible spaces may signify the characters’ or the narrative’s loss of control, thereby challenging the viewers’ assumptions about hypothetical narratives. Through these distorted visuals and manipulated narratives, the audience is propelled into the precarious realm of “truth” and “interpretation.” For me, Reality is a film about noise — noise that both exposes the gaps between the system’s function and its malfunctions and, paradoxically, acts as a bridge to fill those gaps.

To all who exposed the truth as Reality did changing the world and especially the ones who didn't survive the process, this remake of Reality's story will be a tribute. The expressions of an individual who's going to loose everything for exposing truth was patiently reenacted by Sydney. Great cinematography and visual effects that captures the moments of a hero laying down arms. Great background music. Excellent story telling by the producers to mix the actual records to thin the line between the movie and the true story. Instead of a documentary this serves the purpose much better and wishing Reality a happy birthday as well !

Sydney distinguishes herself as a first rate actress in this film.

I’ve never seen Sweeney in a movie but wow brilliant actress. Very original and intriguing film.

An excellent detective drama film, it presents a true story in a good and convincing way, the main actress surprises with her acting and simply plays very perfectly. The twist in the film is good and then it is even interesting to read in various sources about the true story on which the plot is based.

Sydney Sweeney's performance is outstanding here. and this based-on true- story film itself is worth-watching. It's not for entertainment but gripping and has a right taste.

As a film, I found this to be near perfect, but due to entertainment value, it lacks a certain panache that takes away from a perfect score. That being said, it's an excellent film with a massive focus on directing and acting. All of the performers shine in this, particularly Sydney Sweeney and Josh Hamilton. If you have no idea about the plot, then this movie will be incredibly engaging. You will be trying to figure out what's happening, and be very intrigued as things unfold in the last act. Perfect runtime, not all movies need to be 120+ minutes. This is a nice, concise, dialogue driven story that captures an intense moment between a woman and the feds. A very good situational movie, not necessarily a genre, just an event. Thank you.

Was this movie produced explicitly and solely to intimidate whistleblowers? If so well done hbo for contributing to the interests of despicable powers that be and the cause of their vile deeds never being exposed or seeing light of day. Where were you when they were dropping dime about Tuskegee experiments? I'm sure idealistic Americans would be much better off never learning of those inhuman atrocities!

Not too sure why this was made into a movie, not much there in terms of a story. No plot twists, just Sydney Sweeney sweating throughout the movie. Ballsy little Democrat, hence the extra half star.

This was a great movie. With the actual transcript overlaid, it gave a real sense of being there in the moment and watching someone unravel under pressure from a major agency like the FBI. Non-right wingers will have wanted Reality to win in the end, but we all knew that was not going to be the case. I am surprised that the NSA did not have the technology in 2016 to limit who had access to or what would be sent to a printer. That just shows the organisation was too bureaucratic for its own good.

I was so excited for the trailer to watch this movie. I’m not a Sydney Sweeney fan but I was excited to see her in a drama and especially really excited to hear this was a true story. Not sure how I missed it when it actually happened. What did I learn watching this movie? FBI transcripts make horrible movies scripts. In fact, I didn’t even finish the movie. It was way too awkward and slow. Instead I went to YouTube and watched a 60 Minutes segment/interview about reality winner and this whole incident. If you want the story in a much more consumable and informative format here is the link to the 60 Min interview… https://youtu.be/NcR5hlnN31I?si=C82PomNGxPEMEIix

Intense interplay between Sydney Sweeney (as Reality Winner) and Josh Hamilton and Marchánt Davis (as the two FBI agents). Tina Satter did an excellent directing job.

Very well performed piece on the FBI interrogation of Reality Leigh Winner based on recorded log. Film could have used a tiny boost of color, outside the log, into Reality pre- or post- interrogation and imprisonment. The sentence seems very harsh but if it was not, or even if was, some added flavor would have shaped this film into a 4 or 4+ star movie.

Terrible! What a waste of my time. This should have been a news article at best. If a movie plot would have told us anything, it could have been interesting. FBI officer was awkward and very dry as the verbatim was boring and had no interest at all. The repetition and repeating that is was a voluntary search and interview made it seem like the detainment was not real, yet she wasn't allowed to go inside or care for her pets. Don't bother watching. The last footnotes before the credits say it all-leaked documents and consequences.

Boring. Bad acting. Pointless

Sydney Sweeney delivers a powerful, mature performance in "Reality," a film based on the true story of NSA whistleblower Reality Winner. Sweeney's portrayal is undeniably captivating, and the film's reliance on dialogue creates a unique and initially engaging atmosphere. However, while Sydney Sweeney's acting elevates the material, the film itself struggles to maintain its initial momentum. The heavy focus on a single, extended conversation creates a sense of stagnancy. The story, while important, doesn't translate into the consistently thrilling experience one might hope for. Overall, "Reality" is worth watching for Sydney Sweeney's impressive work alone. Those interested in the subject matter may find it fascinating, but for viewers primarily seeking edge-of-your-seat tension, this film might leave something to be desired.

Watched Tina Satter's feature film debut last night, a gripping intimate drama that basically only depicts the arrest of whistleblower Reality Winner in 2017 in real time. A minimalist work without a script. Only the unaltered original dialogue from the FBI audio recording was used. An ingenious cinematic solution was found for the blacked-out passages in the original FBI transcript. The extremely slow penetration of privacy and the emotional dissection of reality in slow-mo are almost painful to watch.