--- title: "Good Night, and Good Luck." year: 2005 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/good-night-and-good-luck" fi1m_id: "good-night-and-good-luck" imdb_id: "tt0433383" tmdb_id: 3291 wikidata_id: "Q319061" fi1m_score: 83 critics_score: 79 critics_reviews: 8 published: "2026-09-15" updated: "2026-09-18T08:38:29.664290+00:00" region: "US" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Good Night, and Good Luck. (2005) Directed by George Clooney · 1h 33m · MPA PG · Drama, History ## Identity Good Night, and Good Luck. - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/good-night-and-good-luck - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** good-night-and-good-luck - **IMDb ID:** tt0433383 - **TMDB ID:** 3291 - **Wikidata ID:** Q319061 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0433383/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/3291, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q319061 **Fi1m score: 83** · Critics 79 from 8 reviews *In a sentence:* Ninety-three minutes of people thinking before speaking, which is an unusual pleasure for a film about television > George Clooney makes television journalism absorbing through precise storytelling and David Strathairn’s severe, attentive Murrow. We recommend it warmly, with one reservation: some of the people surrounding him scarcely get a life beyond their work. ## Synopsis In 1950s America, CBS journalist Edward R. Murrow (David Strathairn) prepares to challenge Senator Joseph McCarthy’s methods on television. His colleagues include Fred Friendly (George Clooney), Shirley Wershba (Patricia Clarkson) and Joe Wershba (Robert Downey Jr.). As the team considers its responsibilities, the network faces commercial pressures over what it broadcasts. Frank Langella plays network president William Paley, with Jeff Daniels as Sig Mickelson. Directed by Clooney, the drama uses archive footage of McCarthy to place the journalists’ work alongside the man they are confronting, asking what a television news programme owes its audience. ## Review *Good Night, and Good Luck.* is a compact, absorbing drama about doing a public job properly when doing so becomes inconvenient to the people paying for it. George Clooney directs the confrontation between CBS journalist Edward R. Murrow and Senator Joseph McCarthy’s without pretending that speaking clearly is effortless. He gives the work enough attention to make it tense. The film admires Murrow openly, sometimes too openly, but its admiration rests on the reporting. The setting is 1950s television, and Murrow’s programme is *See It Now*. David Strathairn gives Murrow a severity that could easily become monotonous. It works because he makes careful distinctions within it, allowing the force of a statement to come through without turning every broadcast into a speech for the ages. We believe in his concentration, and in the effort required to sustain it under pressure. Clooney is suitably unobtrusive as Fred Friendly, giving the ensemble space. These people seem accustomed to working together. Robert Elswit’s black-and-white photography is crucial to the use of actual McCarthy footage. The archive material sits beside the recreated newsroom without a distracting change of appearance. We found the sight of McCarthy himself unexpectedly unsettling, because the man Murrow is challenging is suddenly there for us to scrutinise. Stephen Mirrione’s editing keeps the verbal exchanges brisk and comprehensible. The pace allows us to follow the reporting closely enough to understand the journalists’ choices. James D. Bissell’s production design gives that newsroom the convincing atmosphere of a place where people have work to finish. It is an effective setting for an ensemble whose ease with one another matters. The jazz, with Jim Papoulis credited for music, offers welcome relief from the concentrated talk, although its warmth makes the film’s affection for the period unmistakable. Clooney likes this workplace, and the care taken over its recreation occasionally encourages us to like it a little too easily. The limits are clearest among the supporting characters. Patricia Clarkson and Robert Downey Jr., as Shirley and Joe Wershba, have an ease that makes us want more time with them. Clooney and co-writer Grant Heslov leave several of Murrow’s colleagues defined by their place in his work. There is enough acting talent here to suggest lives the screenplay does not develop, and the occasional attempt to widen its attention feels too slight to satisfy that curiosity. Frank Langella’s William Paley is the useful exception. As the network president, he gives commercial pressure a credible human presence, and the film becomes more interesting when the business of broadcasting intrudes on the journalists’ sense of duty. Langella does not need to make Paley monstrous for us to understand the difficulty. His performance complicates a screenplay that generally leaves little doubt about whose side we should take, particularly when the journalists’ convictions meet the network’s commercial concerns. As a political docudrama, it is unusually willing to make the wording of a broadcast the centre of our attention. That narrow focus will frustrate anyone wanting a fuller account of the people around Murrow, though a comprehensive biography would be a different film. Clooney keeps this one to 93 minutes, which is enough time to establish the stakes and make us care about the work. Save it for an evening when the conversation can wait. *Fi1m score 83, published 15 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics respond warmly to George Clooney’s restrained account of journalists confronting McCarthy, with praise centred on David Strathairn’s controlled performance as Edward R. Murrow. The black-and-white photography and recreation of the CBS newsroom draw consistent approval, while the use of archive footage gives the confrontation particular force. The reviews also value the film’s attention to reporting as patient, collective work, and its concern with television journalism’s responsibility to challenge power. Reservations concern emotional distance and dramatic scope more than performances or visual craft. Several critics find the austerity limiting, citing thin character development or a subplot that adds little. The Telegraph praises the pacing and ensemble while noting historical inaccuracies and omissions. The AV Club offers a more qualified response, finding the film charming but too brief and breezy to achieve much tragic weight. The spread is largely favourable, with disagreement over how much the restraint costs it. ## Straight answers **Is Good Night, and Good Luck. worth watching?** *Good Night, and Good Luck.* is worth watching for anyone who can enjoy 93 minutes of people arguing carefully over the wording of a broadcast, and we scored it 83. David Strathairn's severe, attentive Murrow and Robert Elswit's black-and-white photography make the reporting tense. Our one reservation is that several of Murrow's colleagues scarcely get a life beyond their work. **How long is Good Night, and Good Luck., and what is it rated?** *Good Night, and Good Luck.* runs 1h 33m and is rated PG by the MPA in the US. It is a drama and history film. **Where can I watch Good Night, and Good Luck. in the US?** *Good Night, and Good Luck.* is available to rent from Amazon Prime Video from $3.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service. **How does Good Night, and Good Luck. compare to All the President's Men?** *Good Night, and Good Luck.* is the smaller and quieter of the two newsroom dramas, keeping its attention on the wording of one television programme, while [*All the President's Men*](https://film.one/film/all-the-presidents-men) turns the slow checking of facts into a thriller. Pakula's film is the more widely appealing and the one we would hand to almost anyone; Clooney's suits a reader happy to sit with concentrated talk. **What should I watch after Good Night, and Good Luck.?** After *Good Night, and Good Luck.*, try [*All the President's Men*](https://film.one/film/all-the-presidents-men) (1976, Fi1m 90): Another patient newsroom drama that makes checking a fact feel urgent. Then [*The Insider*](https://film.one/film/the-insider) (1999, Fi1m 89): For the friction between a broadcaster’s public responsibilities and private interests; and [*Z*](https://film.one/film/z) (1969, Fi1m 84): An angrier political thriller, with equal impatience for lies from above. ### Reviews we read (15) - **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (90/100, inferred): The film depicts a team of CBS journalists methodically confronting and exposing Senator Joseph McCarthy through precise reporting and integrity. It praises David Strathairn's performance as Murrow and the innovative use of actual McCarthy footage. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/good-night-and-good-luck-2005) - **Radio Times**, Adam Smith (4/5): An understated ensemble piece about journalists confronting McCarthy, anchored by Strathairn's magnificent performance as Murrow. Gorgeously shot in black and white, it establishes Clooney as a director and comments on the post-9/11 media landscape. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-dqx6y1/good-night-and-good-luck/) - **The Guardian** (80/100, inferred): The film is a downbeat, handsomely shot recreation of Murrow's standoff with McCarthy, adoringly evoking 1950s TV and using real footage effectively. It is austere and docudrama-like with outstanding performances, particularly Strathairn's controlled Murrow, though emotionally restrained. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2006/feb/17/2) - **Time Out**, Joshua Rothkopf (80/100, inferred): Clooney's black-and-white drama captures the thrill of unflinching 1950s journalism and features a heroically severe performance by Strathairn. It is let down slightly by a needless subplot but praised for Langella's turn as the network president. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/good-night-and-good-luck) - **The Telegraph**, Zadie Smith (75/100, inferred): The film is beautifully made, coherent and effective with expert pacing, ensemble casting and control of verbal material; Clooney directs maturely and edits himself out as an actor. Historical content has inaccuracies and elisions, but it remains a great, stylish political docudrama. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/3650300/Clooney-lectures-in-black-and-white.html) - **The AV Club**, Nathan Rabin (65/100, inferred): Clooney's film lovingly captures the romance of crusading journalism and Murrow's stand against McCarthy through strong performances and elegant black-and-white visuals. It is a charming but ultimately lightweight effort that falls short of tragic or epic dimensions due to its brevity and breezy pace. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/good-night-and-good-luck-1798201134) - **Empire**, Simon Crook: The critic praises Clooney's direction for its artful monochrome style, jazz score, and urgent recreation of the 1950s newsroom battle against McCarthyism using archive footage. It calls the film provocative and stimulating as brain-food, though emotionally dry with limited character development. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/good-night-good-luck-review/) - **Screen Daily**: An austere drama of political and journalistic ethics that consecrates Clooney as a serious director, with elegant black-and-white cinematography and a memorable performance by Strathairn. It may prove too dry for some but effectively argues for civil liberties. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/good-night-and-good-luck/4024180.article) - **Sight and Sound**, Geoffrey Macnab: Clooney's film celebrates professionalism and a lost era of journalism through Murrow's stand against McCarthy. It features intense performances, especially Strathairn's, and evokes 1950s TV drama style. [Read](http://old.bfi.org.uk/sightandsound/feature/49166) - **Slant Magazine**, Nick Schager: Clooney shifts to a restrained, workmanlike style that reveres facts and period detail, using crisp monochrome cinematography and strong performances, especially Strathairn's dignified Murrow, to explore contrasts between truth and deceit. The film eloquently highlights television news's duty to challenge power while drawing timely parallels to contemporary politics. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/good-night-and-good-luck/) - **The Hollywood Reporter**, Ray Bennett: Clooney's docudrama offers a snapshot of Murrow taking on McCarthy, lovingly recreating 1950s CBS journalism in black and white. It will resonate with those who know the history but may disappoint viewers seeking a more entertaining political drama like All the President's Men. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/good-night-and-good-luck-review-movie-george-clooney-1236045980/) - **The New Yorker**, David Denby: Clooney's film is an elegant and stirring account of Murrow's team at 'See It Now' courageously taking on McCarthy amid commercial pressures at CBS. It praises Strathairn's accurate portrayal of Murrow's manner and the newsroom atmosphere while noting the film's relevance to contemporary media. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2005/10/10/getting-the-story) - **The New York Times**, A.O. Scott: The film is a passionate essay on journalistic power, truth-telling, and responsibility, reconstructing the era in black-and-white with a cinéma-vérité style focused on the Murrow-McCarthy conflict. It singles out the documentary integration of McCarthy footage as a highlight. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/23/movies/news-in-black-white-and-shades-of-gray.html) - **Eye for Film**, Anton Bitel (85/100, inferred): The critic praises the film as a serious, topical work for adults that informs without being boring and entertains without condescending. They single out its elegant black-and-white visuals, strong performances especially by David Strathairn as Murrow, and its resonance with contemporary issues of media and civil liberties. [Read](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/good-night-and-good-luck-film-review-by-anton-bitel) - **Digital Spy**, Daniel Saney (80/100, inferred): The critic praises Clooney's accomplished filmmaking for its focus on the issues of McCarthyism and the role of journalism, highlighting the film's contemporary relevance and expert acting. The black-and-white production and use of archive footage add authenticity and claustrophobia. [Read](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a29335/good-night-and-good-luck/) ## Details - **Director:** George Clooney - **Director:** George Clooney - **Screenplay:** Grant Heslov, George Clooney - **Cinematography:** Robert Elswit - **Editor:** Stephen Mirrione - **Music:** Jim Papoulis - **Production design:** James D. Bissell - **Costume design:** Louise Frogley - **Producer:** Grant Heslov - **Cast:** David Strathairn as Edward R. Murrow; Patricia Clarkson as Shirley Wershba; George Clooney as Fred Friendly; Jeff Daniels as Sig Mickelson; Robert Downey Jr. as Joe Wershba; Frank Langella as William Paley; Ray Wise as Don Hollenbeck; Robert John Burke as Charlie Mack - **Runtime:** 1h 33m - **Certificate (MPA):** PG - **Release (the US):** 4 November 2005 - **Genres:** Drama, History - **Also in:** [Best Picture winners](https://film.one/collections/oscar-best-picture.md) (Nominee, 2005); [BAFTA Best Film winners](https://film.one/collections/bafta-best-film.md) (Nominee, 2005); [Golden Globe Best Drama winners](https://film.one/collections/golden-globe-drama.md) (Nominee, 2005) - **Budget:** $7 million - **Box office:** $55 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Qg9ZahBu8c ## Where to watch in the US - Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, hd - Amazon Prime Video: buy $9.99, hd *Checked 2026-09-15.* Also available in: AT, DE, DK, ES, FI, FR, GB, IE, IT, NO, SE, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## Awards - Academy Awards 2006: Best Actor (nominated); Best Cinematography (nominated); Best Director (nominated); Best Picture (nominated); Best Production Design (nominated); Best Writing, Original Screenplay (nominated) - Producers Guild Stanley Kramer Award 2006: Producers Guild Stanley Kramer Award (won) - European Film Award for Best Non-European Film 2005: European Film Award for Best Non-European Film (won) ## If you liked this - *All the President's Men* (1976), Fi1m 90: Another patient newsroom drama that makes checking a fact feel urgent. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/all-the-presidents-men.md) - *The Insider* (1999), Fi1m 89: For the friction between a broadcaster’s public responsibilities and private interests. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-insider.md) - *Z* (1969), Fi1m 84: An angrier political thriller, with equal impatience for lies from above. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/z.md) - *The Lives of Others* (2006), Fi1m 84: State surveillance brings professional obedience and private conscience into painful conflict. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-lives-of-others.md) - *The Newsreader* (2021): Television journalism gets more room for the people behind the broadcasts. --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/good-night-and-good-luck