Nick Davies (David Tennant), a freelance journalist for The Guardian, investigates the use of phone hacking by the News of the World and The Sun newspapers. While Detective Chief Superintendent Dave Cook (Robert Carlyle) re-investigates the 1987 murder of Daniel Morgan, one of the Metropolitan Police Service's more troublesome unsolved cases, and one with links to the hacking scandal.
The hacking scandal is one of those stories that gripped all of the UK, with equal parts fascination and outrage. Not only were the practices outrageous, so were the lengths that a certain few went to in order to cover them up. That is what Nick Davies found himself up against when he received a tip from an anonymous source as to the scale of the illicit operation being run by the News of the World. He was the first to report on the story, and The Hack captures what an uphill struggle it was for him to force it into the light. All of which makes him the perfect person - through David Tennant's clever performance - to lead us through this quagmire of corruption and cover up.
The way Tennant is able to combine playing Davies with telling the story as a kind of on-screen narrator is not only impressive, it can also at times be rather amusing, while providing insight and context. How often does a dramatisation of real events point out when details have been changed? And I'm not talking about a little warning that comes at the beginning of the show/film. I mean that the change is pointed out to the audience at the specific moment it happens. This can be anything from a change of location, to just how Davies receives a piece of evidence. It’s something the show is able to have fun with, adding both interesting little facts and some levity to an otherwise sickening tale. Watching Davies go through a whole host of players before settling on the right person to portray 'Mr Apollo' (his anonymous source) is a particularly amusing way to kick things off. It also highlights the levels of speculation regarding that particular source's identity.
Unfortunately, despite utilising a rather inventive method for telling this story, there is a definite lull in the middle. After kicking things off with Davies and his hacking investigation, we move to DCS Dave Cook and his investigation into the murder of Daniel Morgan. Except it’s not so much about the investigation as it is what Cook was put through while investigating. Something Carlyle does a magnificent job of portraying, by the way. In fact, it’s highly likely that you’ll come away from this feeling more sorry for Cook and his family than many of the other prominent players. It’s just that jumping between the two stories, which involves a lot of jumping back and forth through time, can leave things feeling a little discombobulated. Cook’s story also doesn’t benefit from that inventive method of storytelling. There’s no narrator breaking the fourth wall to fill us in on the details. Just the long suffering Cook and all that he went through whilst trying to do the right thing.
Realistically, the stories of the hacking scandal and the Daniel Morgan murder investigation should have been told separately. I understand why they combined them, as the two stories are inexorably linked, but the result can at times be an over complicated mess. Not only that, but by cramming the two stories together - and I can only imagine what was left out in order to do so - makes it feel like you’re not doing either justice. Especially the Morgan investigation. Whereas if you told them separately - I know; why have one show when you can have two at twice the price, right? - you could go into more detail on both, and tie them together in a way that feels more natural. You would also avoid the discombobulation of simultaneously jumping between stories and time periods.
All of which becomes apparent towards the end as the two stories begin to connect, and it becomes less of a Davies or Cook story. The show really picks up again after lulling in the middle, as more and more shocking details are revealed. That sense of discombobulation begins to fade as a sense of cohesion develops between the two stories. This is also where things start to get really interesting, as new details emerge, more victims come forward, and the sheer size of this criminal endeavour becomes apparent. And yet, even with all the coverage the hacking scandal received, The Hack still has a few surprises up its sleeves. Taking us to some rather unexpected places, and introducing us to some unforeseen players.
There are times when The Hack feels like two shows forced into one, which can lead to confusion and a sense of meandering. But the shocking nature of this massive criminal endeavour, and the inventive method by which the story is told (even if it is only used half the time) make it a worthwhile watch.
7/10
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