Director and screenwriter Roxine Helberg premiered her feature debut, Cold Copy, at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival. Tracee Ellis Ross stars as Diane Heger, the cutthroat news reporter with an impressive track record of getting the truth from public figures. When an ambitious journalism student, Mia Scott , desperately competes for her attention, it raises a lot of questions about friendly competition, ethics, and truth in reporting.
Cold Copy contains some themes that could present itself as a mashup of Todd Field’s Tár and David Frankel’s The Devil Wears Prada. There are familiar plotlines about the power struggles between mentor and mentee, as well as becoming different, maybe even uglier, versions of ourselves to get the job done by any means necessary. But what sets those films apart from Helberg’s is how there are learning opportunities and even consequences for the characters.
A character-driven thriller that aims to criticize the media and ethics within journalism is what Cold Copy should have been. But it simply comes up short in its execution. But if there’s one reason to watch the film, look no further than Tracee Ellis Ross's performance. She is the saving grace of the film; her portrayal almost forgives the movie's negligent messaging.