Ink Review (TIFF 2026)
Ink (dir. Danny Boyle) is a film where my opinion went from “this is really, really good” to “oh, I actually feel complicated about this” within the span of the end credits rolling to the end of the post screening audience Q&A session at TIFF. Essentially, Boyle was asked about the use of AI in this film, where he said there were about 30 seconds of it and sort of avoided the question, saying the broader questions were too big for an audience Q&A. Following this, an audience member shouted out, “I love you but never do that shit again” and the moderator ended the session abruptly, thanking everyone for coming.
The film is based on a stage play of the same name (both written by James Graham), which depicts the life of Larry Lamb (Jack O’ Connell) after he accepts Rupert Murdoch’s (Guy Pearce) offer to be the editor of The Sun, a British tabloid, as he grows it to be the biggest newspaper in the country.
Ink’s description as depicting what led to the state of news reporting today is certainly apt. The film, through its 116 minute runtime, never loses sight of what it’s about, as Lamb continues to lose himself in the pursuit of greater sales – which he and Murdoch both believe to be what makes a newspaper good – even as the people he recruited slowly grow concerned over whether any of this is worth it, especially as the film takes its darker turn with the kidnapping and murder of Muriel Mackay. However, within all this, I found it extremely interesting that Murdoch isn’t quite framed as a bad person in the way Lamb is, especially considering Murdoch’s status in the real world news apparatus, as well as the final montage at the end of the film that showcases the state of the media now because of the Sun’s popularity back in the 1970s.
Jack O’ Connell and Guy Pearce are absolute showstealers in this film, but Claire Foy’s portrayal of Jules Davis (an amalgamation of the women who worked at Fleet Street at the time) is just as good in this whole film. The soundtrack is also so electric, Daniel Pemberton returns to show why he’s one of the best right now.
Danny Boyle isn’t a filmmaker I’m familiar with outside Slumdog Millionaire, but I’ve always found his filmmaking methodology inspiring, the way he works with small budgets and tries some unorthodox methods – parts of this film were shot on an iPhone for example – along with a very kinetic editing style really lead to an unique visual language. The high speed editing, the use of various visual cues like red boxes on the screen and symbols are all very cool and not something you see on the regular.
But that too is why the use of AI in this film is heartbreaking to me. Truth be told, I completely forgot that discussions of this had happened after its screenings at Venice and Telluride, and only got reminded during that post screening question and answer session. That too is a problem, some of it in the scope of this review and some beyond.
In the scope of this review, what is relevant is the specific use of it, and what that means for Ink itself. In the film, according to Boyle, it was used to animate the rats that run around the offices of The Sun, as well as animate some old photographs. In the modern world we’re living in, where misinformation runs rampant as a result of instantaneous transmission of information and getting a quick click (which is almost certainly an extension of The Sun becoming so popular, as the movie surmises), generative AI is being used to further that. It is funny that the ending montage of the film tries to use footage from Fox News (that they were prevented from using and the film even states that), which is owned by Rupert Murdoch and also used to spread conservative viewpoints across the United States, but then also uses generative AI within the film itself. Sure, it was used for a film that is about how the news media apparatus is failing, but the tool itself is inherently flawed, and so I’m not sure of how this all squares up, especially given that I (and maybe it was just me) didn’t really notice the AI used in the film.
It’s questions like that which are worth asking, and especially to creatives using AI in public as well. How far is too far when using tools like this to create “art”, and where does the line get drawn?
