Journalism and media have undergone significant changes in the 21st century. The internet has altered everything and barriers are gone. The gatekeepers who used to be there to say what was or wasn’t news don’t exist, at least not in the way they used to. Director Danny Boyle has examined this “Give ’em what they want” tabloid media culture in his latest movie “Ink,” which will make anyone who values real journalism sick to their stomach.
Adapting the play of the same name, the movie traces the origins of the British gossip rag The Sun, focusing on a group of misfit visionaries who had an idea for a new kind of news. Rather than simply report “the news,” why not give people what they want instead?
Less a biopic a about Rupert Murdoch (played here by Guy Pearce) and his family, the real-life family the Roy clan on “Succession” is based off of, it focuses instead largely on Larry Lamb, played by “Sinners” star Jack O’Connell. Lamb was the man hand-picked by Murdoch to change The Sun from a fledgling paper into something, well, different. Driven by revenge and a sense of “I’ll show ’em,” Lamb, at least as presented by Boyle, is one of the most significant figures who shaped the modern era. And not in a good way, it probably goes without saying. But I’ll say it anyway.
Ink stylishly examines the dark origins of modern journalism
The story being told in “Ink” is an ugly one with grave consequences in the real world. Danny Boyle starts out by making this seem almost fun and exciting. Larry Lamb assembling his team has an “Ocean’s Eleven” quality to it, with the kinetic energy of some of the director’s best movies, most notably “Trainspotting.”
Slowly but surely though, it all devolves into something more sinister. Even though news and journalism should probably be seen as a public good and an essential function of any democratic society, the need to make these publications profitable changes the game. Lamb and Rupert Murdoch lean into the “business” side of the news business, and that’s where things get downright icky.
The tone of “Ink” shifts from a fun outsider tale to a dark story about taking something too far in pursuit of capitalist superiority. We see Larry Lamb lose the man he was, becoming a man that’s difficult to respect. While the great newsroom movies in cinema history, such as “All the President’s Men” and “Spotlight,” make viewers feel the power of journalism, “Ink” forces the viewer to understand that power can and often is used in far less noble ways. Boyle is offering up his view of the men responsible for that shift.
By heading back to the past, namely the late ’60s in the U.K., Boyle shines a light on the modern era. Podcasts. Blogs. Tabloids. Cable news. It all traces its roots back to this moment in history and it’s hard not to leave this movie feeling some kind of way about our current media culture.
Ink is a showcase for Jack O’Connell as an actor
“Ink” also makes the viewer think about how accurate movies like “Spotlight” and other “based on a true story” movies are. Boyle and writer James Graham probably weren’t too interested in getting everything exactly right, as this movie is about how a narrative can be shaped. Boyle and Graham shaped a narrative using real people who had real influence on the world as we know it. Accuracy isn’t the point. It’s about painting a picture.
“Ink” is a true showcase for Jack O’Connell. He’s chewed the screen rather delightfully in movies like “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple” in recent years. But this film allows him to be more human and take the driver’s seat in a grounded movie with a killer ensemble. He’s the best part of a movie that also includes an excellent Claire Foy and a good-as-ever Guy Pearce.
Pearce, in particular, deserves credit for playing Rupert Murdoch with nuance. It would be easy to turn the guy who helped create Fox News into a cigar-chomping, cartoonish villain. Pearce didn’t take the easy way out.
Will “Ink” rank amongst Danny Boyle’s best films? Maybe not. It’s tonally uneven and about as subtle as a jackhammer. But it’s also got one hell of a point to make. News is kind of like vegetables: Not the most fun, but nutritious and necessary. “Ink” shines an uncomfortable light on how we, as a society, allowed news to turn from vegetables into junk food. Eat enough junk food, you’ll get sick.
/Film Rating: 7.5 out of 10
“Ink” hits select theatres December 11, 2026, before releasing on Netflix on January 8, 2027.