Shattered Glass

Reviewed by:
Paul Ulane

Stephen Glass did for journalism what Jayson Blair did for…journalism—but Glass did it first and got a Hollywood movie out of it (first, anyway). Hayden Christensen plays Glass, a young writer at the New Republic who got tired of the facts and decided to make up his own. It worked just long enough to garner him fame and respect among his colleagues in the publishing world and spawn this riveting movie. The DVD extras are sparse, but each provides new information on the deceptive storyteller. The commentary features director Billy Ray and former New Republic editor Chuck Lane (who uncovered the extent of Glass’ deception and fired the then 25-year-old writer) confirming specific events and providing more details. The only other feature is a 60 Minutes piece, in which Glass is interviewed, followed through key locations in the tale, and allowed to present a laughable apology to his former colleagues five years after the fact. The lesson here: Unprofessional behavior can get you fired, but it can also get you a sweet six-figure book deal.