State of Play (TV series)

Plot

Journalist Cal McCaffrey of The Herald investigates the murder of teenager Kelvin Stagg, which appears drug-related. He and colleagues Della Smith and editor Cameron Foster find a connection to the same-day death of Sonia Baker, a researcher for MP Stephen Collins. A love affair scandal emerges, and they uncover a political conspiracy involving petroleum industry-backed corruption of government ministers.

Reception

Gareth McLean of The Guardian called the first episode "bloody magic," praising the gripping story, ace acting, and Paul Abbott's outstanding script with exceptional dialogue and swift exposition. Paul Hoggart in The Times highlighted the turbulent dynamism of the performances from Morrissey and Simm. James Walton in The Daily Telegraph was more cautious, finding the opener promising but noting the serial could still go wrong. By episode four, Jonathan Wright of The Guardian's "The Guide" described it as a political conspiracy thriller as tense as Edge of Darkness and as cynical as House of Cards.

Tom Sutcliffe of The Independent wrote of the final episode that a thriller can end only in anticlimax, and State of Play left viewers with the first kind of let-down. Bill Nighy won the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor. The series also won a Peabody Award in 2004 and BAFTAs for Best Sound and Best Editing. It received nominations for Best Actor (Morrissey), Best Drama Serial, Best Original Television Music, and Best Photography and Lighting.

Additional awards came from the Royal Television Society, Banff Television Festival, Broadcasting Press Guild, Cologne Conference, Directors Guild of Great Britain, Edgar Awards, and Monte Carlo TV Festival.

Adaptation

In April 2009, an American film adaptation of State of Play hit theaters. Kevin Macdonald directed, with a screenplay by Matthew Michael Carnahan, Tony Gilroy, Peter Morgan, and Billy Ray. The plot kept the core characters but shifted the action to Washington, D.C. Ben Affleck, Russell Crowe, Rachel McAdams, and Helen Mirren starred. While generally well-received, the film did not earn the same acclaim as the original series.