Lying to tell a story

Billy Ray's Shattered Glass charts the true story of journalist Stephen Glass (Hayden Christensen), a writer on esteemed Washington magazine The New Republic until, in 1998, the bottom fell out of his sparkling career.

Following an article about computer hackers, an online magazine began to investigate Glass's findings and quickly discovered the piece - along with several others - was fiction.

Ray's focus on the fraudster's psychology is interesting: Glass is so convinced of his working methods he can't comprehend he might be crossing ethical boundaries. A selfdefined 'people person', he's constantly trying to charm and gain trust.

It's effective: Glass's colleagues at first rally round him, refusing to admit he's deceived them. Christensen is good, if a little overheated, but best is Peter Sarsgaard, playing Glass's editor. He's the movie's moral core, keeping the audience on the path of truth.

Shattered Glass
Cert: cert12A