Snowden

About Snowden:

Snowden is a 2016 biographical thriller film directed by Oliver Stone based on the life of Edward Snowden, a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) employee, and National Security Agency (NSA) subcontractor. The film provides an in-depth look at Snowden's transformation from a hopeful patriot to a fugitive wanted for exposing state secrets. After landing a top job at the NSA, Snowden learns about the government's mass surveillance program, which leads him to smuggle classified documents and leak them. This courageous act earns him admiration from some and labels him a traitor to others.

Making / Production:

The film was directed by Oliver Stone and co-produced by Moritz Borman, Eric Kopeloff, Philip Schulz-Deyle, and Fernando Sulichin. Stone and Kieran Fitzgerald wrote the screenplay. It was based on two books: "The Snowden Files" by Luke Harding and "Time of the Octopus" by Anatoly Kucherena. The filming took place in many countries including the United States, Germany, and Hong Kong.

Actors:

• Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Edward Snowden: Playing the protagonist, Gordon-Levitt gives a compelling performance of a man torn between his duty and moral compass.
• Shailene Woodley as Lindsay Mills: Woodley portrays the long-time girlfriend of Snowden, offering a grounding and humanizing perspective to the spy drama.
• Zachary Quinto as Glenn Greenwald: Quinto plays the journalist who was the conduit for Snowden's whistleblowing.
• Melissa Leo as Laura Poitras: Leo portrays the documentarian who filmed Snowden's revelations and created the documentary 'Citizenfour'.

Trivia / Interesting Facts:

• Jesse Eisenberg was originally considered for the role of Edward Snowden.
• The film was shot under utmost secrecy much like the subject matter it represents.
• Oliver Stone and Shailene Woodley met with the real Edward Snowden in Russia where he lives in exile.

Awards:

The movie did not win major awards but it was nominated for "Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media" at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards. Joseph Gordon-Levitt's performance was highly acclaimed, earning a nomination for "Best Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama" from the Jupiter Awards.

Quotes:

• "The government knows that it's a violation of the constitution to spy on people, but they're doing it anyway."
• "I can't ignore the violation of civil liberties and neither should you."
• "Most Americans don't want freedom, they want security."

Music, Soundtrack:

• "Securing The Secrets" - Composed by Craig Armstrong, Edward Trybek
• "The Hill" - Yuna
• "Snowden Fugue" - Composed by Craig Armstrong, Edward Trybek
• "The Veil" - Peter Gabriel