Shattered Glass (2003)

Rating: 3 Stars (out of 4)

Fraud Man Out

By Jeffrey M. Anderson

Buy Shattered Glass on DVD.

It's just a little creepy to make a celebrity out of this great faker, but Shattered Glass nonetheless is an even and gripping portrait of Stephen Glass, the New Republic reporter who fabricated many of his published stories at the magazine, circa 1998. Actor Hayden Christensen presents Glass as a needy and somewhat charming passive-aggressive, though I'm still not sure if the performance works. I would have liked to try something snakier, like Christian Bale's performance in American Psycho. Peter Sarsgaard does good things with Chuck Lane, the unpopular editor who discovers Glass's transgressions. But the real Lane reportedly served as a consultant on the film, which probably explains why the fictional Lane comes out as a hero. Screenwriter Billy Ray (Color of Night, Hart's War) makes his directorial debut, and though the film is both seductive and maddening, you can't quite write it off. It sticks in your brain. Steve Zahn, Hank Azaria, Rosario Dawson and Melanie Lynskey co-star, and the wonderful Chloe Sevigny gives a great, understated performance as Glass's closest colleague.

Starring: Hayden Christensen, Peter Sarsgaard, Chloe Sevigny, Rosario Dawson, Melanie Lynskey, Hank Azaria, Steve Zahn
Written by: Billy Ray, based on an article by Buzz Bissinger
Directed by: Billy Ray
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language, sexual references and brief drug use
Running Time: 95 minutes
Date: November 14, 2003