I was turned onto this film after hearing about it on a Podcast... ( I think it was Cinebanter but not completely sure.) The main critique that intrigued me was that it was apparently good casting for Hayden Christensen.
Well, that turned out to be very true. Which, while good for the movie, is not necessarily a good thing for Christensen.
Shattered Glass is the story of of Stephen Glass, a writer for the New Republic magazine in the late 1990's. He enjoyed a meteoric rise at the magazine and had quite a healthy dose of respect from his colleagues until it all came crashing down after it was revealed that one of his stories had facts that were "suspect" after some cursory examination.
Turns out that Glass had fabricated almost all of the facts of his stories during his entire career at the New Republic, which had long reaching impact on both himself and the magazine.
The movie, which stars Christensen, Peter Sarsgaard, and Chloe Sevigny, covers that last few months of his career at the Republic, just as things started unravelling. Wisely, the writers and the directors made the decision to start the film at this time, since the majority of the public (especially those who would see the film) were already very familiar with the events from the news.
They chose instead to focus on the relationship that Glass had with his editor Chuck Lane (played by Sarsgaard). Initially a little contentious, then friendly, then ultimately poisoned by the events of the plot, both actors do quite a good job at portraying the various levels.
And, the movie really shines with Christensen's performance. Where his whiny, petulant style seemed drastically out of place in the Star Wars prequels, it actually works here. Instead of anger or resentment, as an audience member, you almost feel a perverse pity for this attractive, intelligent, talented man (boy, actually) who made some phenomenally bad choices. It works in the context of the piece, and I wouldn't be surprised if the role wasn't written with him in mind.
Where it falls down, unfortunately, is in the Extras on the DVD. The real Glass is interviewed by 20/20 a few years later and that feature is included here. The actual person comes off as far more genuine, far more earnest, and potentially far more duplicitous - not at all the person that Christensen portrayed.
As a fictional character, he does a bang up job. As a portrayal of the actual Stephen Glass? Meh - not so hot. Still worth a look... particularly for fans of Sarsgaard, Sevigny, or Steve Zahn (who plays the Wired reporter who starts the ball rolling that ultimately crushes Glass).