“State of Play” is one of those rare thrillers that are smart and exciting.  It explores two distinct areas of life in the United States: politics and the newspaper business.  The film is fascinating to watch and exquisite in detail.

The movie opens with an execution of a man running franticly from a shadowy figure.  A delivery person has the unfortunate timing of witnessing this event and gets shot as well.  The next day a young woman is killed at the subway station.  We soon learn that this woman was a research assistant for Congressman Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck) and was having an affair with him.  The deaths don’t seem connected, but there is more that meets the eye in our nation’s capital.

Cal McAffrey (Russell Crowe) is a dogged investigative reporter who knows the ropes and has numerous contacts around town.  He works for the fictional Washington Globe, which recently had gone through an ownership change.  A new element to the paper is the online portion of it which has various bloggers.  Della Frye (Rachel McAdams) is a political blogger who starts the investigation into the death of the research assistant.  Cal is old school and doesn’t like that this new realm is seeping into his beloved profession.

One of the many things that “State of Play” gets right is the depiction of the newspaper world.  Cal’s desk isn’t neat and in place.  He has books, papers and notes scattered around his small cubicle.  In various points of the film, you see reporters on the phone tracking down leads and probing for information.  Everything feels authentic and true to nature.  It also seems timely with the new ownership angle and with the emerging online aspect of papers.  There is a bit of rivalry out there with people who work at a newspaper and people who exclusively work online.  The tension must be heightened when the two factions work for the same company.

Cameron Lynne (Hellen Mirren) is the feisty and ruthless English editor of the Washington Globe.  She expects results and nothing else.  The sale of the paper has put even more pressure on her to increase circulation and get the headline grabbing stories.  It soon becomes clear that there is a major story with these deaths.  Cal and Della are forced to work together reluctantly.

Both reporters see the story in different angles.  Della wants to focus on the personal side of the tragedy.  She wants to dig deep into the affair.  Cal is more interested in the corporate side.  Cal though has a personal connection to the story.  Cal used to be roommates with the congressman and is very close to his estranged wife Anne (Robin Wright Penn).  He wants to delve into the story, but doesn’t want to sully the reputation of Collins.  This is the tricky part of journalism.  The human element must unconsciously creep into stories where the reporter has a relationship with the people being reported on.  It is fascinating to watch this in action.

The corporate side that Cal investigates deals with PointCorp, a secretive security organization that gets work from the Defense Department.  PointCorp is being investigated by Congress for their dealings in the Middle East.  Collins is a member of this investigation.

Cal and Della weave through all this web of deceit and greed.  They are relentless in their pursuit of the real story.  There is a mysterious briefcase with incriminating photos that fit into the puzzle.  The more they dig, the deeper they get.  Crowe and McAdams have good chemistry as the seasoned pro and the up and coming reporter.  Thankfully the movie doesn’t tack on a needless romance between the two.  The only physical contact is the occasional fist bump or high five.  They each learn more about their craft from each other.

Kevin Macdonald (“Last King of Scotland”) is the director of this fine political stew.  He keeps things moving and creates a nice sense of unease about what will happen.  Matthew Michael Carnahan is the main screenwriter with contributions from Tony Gilroy and Billy Ray.  The movie is based on a well received BBC miniseries by Paul Abbott.  That miniseries was six hours long, so Carnahan had a lot of work to do to condense it down to two hours.  He did a good job achieving this seemingly impossible task.

Jeff Daniels has a small pivotal role as a high ranking congressman in Collins’s political party.  His character becomes concerned with the scandal enveloping Collins and the fallout with the party and hearing.  You never quite know where he is coming from.  Everything has to be looked at closely when watching this film.

Penn also turns in sterling work as the put upon wife of the cheating congressman.  There are levels to her character that slowly reveal themselves in time.  Affleck shows that he is an underrated actor.  With good material, Affleck can deliver.  Unfortunately for Affleck, he hasn’t always picked the best parts for his talents.

A big surprise is Jason Bateman as a drugged out club promoter.  This is normally not a character that Bateman plays.  He portrays it with just enough humor and edge that fits the character to a tee.

With most thrillers, there are twists and turns to be had.  “State of Play” is no exception.  Macdonald executes these maneuvers with astute deftness and touch.  You don’t feel cheated or used after seeing what unfolds.  It all develops naturally and makes sense after close examination.  “State of Play” is a film that will generate intelligent discussion afterwards.  “State of Play” is a timely thriller that delivers on its promise.