'At the center of the storm is Murrow, standing firm against the push for compromise. It's a bitch -- not to mention a bore -- to play a noble monument. Strathairn dodges that pitfall by making Murrow fallible, funny and human. Chain-smoking off the air and on, he mines the humor in the deft script by Clooney and producer Grant Heslov.

'Strathairn lets us see the war in Murrow's eyes as he takes on McCarthy not just for confusing dissent with disloyalty but for deciding to smear Murrow himself when the senator makes an appearance on See It Now. A spark of rage burns in Murrow, and Strathairn shows us the flame. Best known for his work in the films of his Williams College friend John Sayles (check out Passion Fish right now if you haven't seen it), Strathairn comes into his own with this career role, to which he brings three decades of acting expertise. It's a performance of ferocity and feeling that you won't soon forget.'