In this complicated but slightly above-average political thriller, a rumpled newspaper reporter (Russell Crowe) unearths a conpiracy involving an old friend, a sitting congressman (Ben Affleck); the politician’s murdered mistress; a private-security corporation; low-rent drug dealers; and adultery. Crowe’s grim, appealing performance, along with Rachel MacAdams’ turn as a plucky blogger, keep the energy amped up just enough to hold interest, although ultimately the use of red herrings and a deus ex machina prevent this movie from being all that it can be.

A thief  is killed in an alley; the next day, a pretty congressman’s aide is killed in a D.C. train station. Disheveled old-school newsman Cal McAffrey (Crowe) soon discovers a connection between the two, but Della Frye (MacAdams), a blogger for the paper, steals his thunder with a sensationalistic piece on the paper’s website. Realizing they are pursuing different angles of the same story, McAffrey and Frye join forces, descending into the seamy underbelly of the capital city. Who had Sonia Baker killed, and why? The answers, naturally, will expose a highly intertwined network of corruption from Rep. Collins and outward.

In many ways, this movie is just like any other conspiracy-in-Washington thriller; there’s twists and turns, some plausible and some not, and just when you think you have it all figured out, BAM, you’re wrong, sorry, Charlie. That’s really standard issue for this kind of thing, all set against quick DC exterior shots and to a pulse-pounding percussion soundtrack.

And many of the elements of the movie  seem awfully familiar. Like how all politicians are corrupt. And how there must always be some ink-stained wretch tenaciously clinging to pre-Internet values. Oh, and a tense chase-and-fight in an underground garage. And a tough-as-nails editor (here played with profane Britishness by Dame Helen Mirren).

But what State of Play brings to the table is a passionate, earthy Russell Crowe, who instills a real sense of justice and good old fashioned journalism, even as the intricate web inevitably ensnares him as well. Crowe’s gravitas makes the movie, really; try to picture a comparative thespian lightweight, like Nicolas Cage, or a movie star, like Tom Hanks or Brad Pitt, in this role, and you can’t. Crowe’s Cal isn’t pretty to look at, which lends the character credibility, and his single-minded pursuit of what he believes is the truth – despite his own conflict of interest. All that matters is the story, Cal McAffrey thinks, and as he steadfastly pursues the truth, he gladly uses those who would be his friends.

Crowe is half the story, however; the story itself is the other half. While the emphasis is on the whodunit angle of the caper, under that is the role that the media plays in investigating powerful conspiracies. For as much as McAffrey wishes to believe he’s just doing his job, it’s obvious that he’s pretending that his own involvement in the story has nothing to do with the story itself. This moral ambiguity, which seems plain in real life, helps color the movie in a way that definitely does set the movie apart from others of its ilk.

The supporting cast is also worth mentioning. MacAdams is very good as the green, wide-eyed rookie (“don’t show those dewy cub-reporter eyes to me!” bellows Mirren); Mirren herself is gritty as the chief, although I’m not sure why her character has a British accent here. She couldn’t do an American one? (Yes, I’m aware the movie is based on a BBC series, but still.) Also showing up are Jeff Daniels as a calm fellow politico and Robin Wright Penn, in a subtle, endearing role as the congressman’s wife. Oh, and Ben Affleck, but sadly he’s by far the nadir of the entire film; vapid, bland, and useless, Affleck should have been replaced by someone with a personality.

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