"'Good Night, and Good Luck:' scratching blacklists, making A-lists"

It's slow, it's old-fashioned, and it's hard to follow. It's also the best film of the year so far.

"Good Night, and Good Luck" chronicles Edward R. Murrow's assault on Joseph McCarthy.

When Senator Joseph McCarthy indiscriminately blacklisted Americans, no one had the cojones to stand up to him out of fear of being labeled a Communist and suffering the social repercussions.

Murrow was the first to publicly question McCarthy on his CBS television show "See It Now." As a result, the Senator's ruthless tactics were brought to an end.

"Good Night" looks, smells, sounds and feels vintage 1954. The black-and-white film sends moviegoers back to a time when people feared mushroom clouds and Communists, not global warming and terrorists.

Incorporated testimonials from McCarthy and clips from the actual "See It Now" program flow evenly and believably, adding to the authentic touch that director George Clooney tries so hard to maintain.

Clooney shows incredible poise as director, rarely straying from the film's subject. There's no scene depicting Murrow's personal life, nor does he entangle the storyline in a web of unnecessary subplots.

Since his freshman debut behind the camera in "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind," Clooney has seasoned his storytelling with prudence and precision.

The film's slow tempo builds tension similar to Francis Ford Coppola's "The Conversion" and its seriousness is as straight-faced as "All the President's Men."

David Straithairn's ("L.A Confidential") presentation as Edward R. Murrow is one of the most compelling recent performances of a historical personage. Straithairn's characterization is in the same class as Bruno Ganz's riveting replication of Hitler in "Downfall" or Anthony Hopkins' role in "Nixon."

While Hopkins and Ganz laid out raving monologues and high-powered speeches, Straithairn conveys the emotional burden Murrow carries with subtle changes in his normally stoic behavior. The viewer diagnoses Murrow's inner struggle through slight deviations in his mannerisms and posture.

Clooney follows the golden rule of film direction: less is more. He stays on course and keeps his all-star cast in check, reminding himself and high profile actors Jeff Daniels, Robert Downey Jr. and Frank Langella to not abandon their supporting-role statuses with over-the-top portrayals.

Clooney momentarily strays from the storyline only to underline the thesis that is always quietly dwelling in the film's subtext. To embolden his point, Clooney fast-forwards to 1958 when Murrow is giving his speech at a Journalism Convention in Chicago.

"I have decided to express my concern about what I believe to be happening to radio and television..." Murrow says. "I am seized with an abiding fear regarding what these two instruments are doing to our society, our culture and our heritage...television in the main insulates us from the realities of the world in which we live."

Whether it was a tribute to Murrow's foresightedness, or a stab at modern media, Clooney eloquently pulls it off as few directors can. Melding past events to a contemporary concept is difficult, but Clooney pulls it off adroitly.

"Good Night" runs like a docudrama similar to Oliver Stone's "JFK" or "Thirteen Days" in that it presents a famous historical event with fictional dialogue filling in the plot. However, "Good Night" conveys a message with which all generations can sympathize. While "JFK" and "Thirteen Days" give history lectures, "Good Night" will be as relevant in 2050 as it is in 2005.

Murrow's crusade against corporations, shrewd politicians and the media give the film staying power that will allow it to adapt with the times.

Despite being a period piece with an archaic layout, "Good Night, and Good Luck" is an instant classic that will be categorized in the annals of American cinema as one of the best from this generation of filmmakers.