The Fifth Estate

To those of you who have been hiding under a rock, or those who need their memories jogged, please allow me to refresh you. In 2010 WikiLeaks faced huge publicity for releasing documents which brought down a billion dollar Icelandic bank, and showed the murder of two Reuters employees.

Director Bill Condon (Dreamgirls, writer of Chicago), has had time to ruminate on these events and bring a serious and balanced view on the founding of WikiLeaks and the trouble it caused. The controversial figure of Julian Assange is played with real talent by Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock, and if you havenâ��t seen Sherlock then you must go and marvel at its brilliance), and cast members including Daniel Br�¼hl and Peter Capaldi (the new Doctor Who).

The film begins in 2010 but flashes back regularly to 2007, when Assange and journalist Daniel Domscheit-Berg first met, and to Assange�s childhood, in which a cult-obsession is revealed, as well as childhood trauma. This film is sure to appeal to all those with an active interest in world events, politics, conspiracy, and the delightful Mr. Cumberbatch. It proves to be an inspiring film, full of quotes which will make you want to change the world for the better including �man can topple the most powerful and most repressive of regimes�. It will certainly make you think differently about the press and the governments that control us.

Henrietta Yewe-Dyer