15 Average Oscar Bait Films Elevated By Amazing Performances
7. Denial
Denial tells the true story of a trial in which Deborah Lipstadt (Rachel Weisz), a Holocaust scholar, was sued by David Irving (Timothy Spall), a Holocaust denier, for libel. This is a really good story that deserved to be told but Denial doesn't quite do it justice and really belonged on the small screen for two main reasons.
Firstly, it does suffer from mediocre, TV movie-style directing but secondly, and more importantly, it feels rushed and would've worked far better as a miniseries in which the story could've been explored properly. Nevertheless, while the film is ultimately disappointing, it's certainly not a total loss, especially thanks to the universal strength of the cast.
Timothy Spall absolutely steals the film thanks to a very well-rounded performance as the film's antagonist, but he's given great back-up by Rachel Weisz, Tom Wilkinson and Andrew Scott, who play the barrister and solicitor assisting Lipstadt's case respectively. All of them rise to the challenge and keep Denial watchable enough.