Former Air Force veteran and NSA contractor Reality Winner was just 25 years old when she was charged under the Espionage Act, facing a decade in prison for leaking a classified document that seemed to prove Russia’s interference in the 2016 Presidential election. At the time, then-President Trump vehemently denied any wrongdoing in his quest for the ultimate power position, claiming that any talk of Russia’s collusion was just a distraction from his victory. It was a tense time in America, made even more unbearable for Reality as she stared at a document that contradicted everything Trump was saying publicly. Taking matters into her own hands, she made a rushed decision to leak the document. Just as quickly, she was faced with the consequences.

The politically-charged documentarian Sonia Kennebeck (Enemies of the State, National Bird) brings the story of the now 31-year-old Reality Winner back into the public’s consciousness in the self-titled documentary, Reality Winner. Executive produced by Wim Wenders, the film is the first official statement from Reality since her release from prison on June 2, 2021. Using intimate, never-before-heard conversations between Reality and her family, Kennebeck crafts a thought-provoking exposé about the risks of whistleblowing, even if acting in good faith on behalf of the country, and begs the question if her actions constitute that of a traitor or a hero.

Throughout the swift 94-minute runtime, Reality recounts the morning of her initial confrontation with FBI agents, her struggle to adjust to prison, and her eventual release and acclimation back into the world post-Covid. Soft-spoken yet unabashedly confident, Reality conducts the sit-down interview in the yard of her parent’s home (and who can blame her for wanting to be outside after spending years in a jail cell). Assisting in the storytelling is Reality’s mother, Billie Winner-Davis, whose own emotional rollercoaster is a painstaking watch. Through their own words and corresponding verité footage, Reality and Billie’s individual experiences over the last five years show an unwavering strength in the midst of a radioactive political climate.

The story of Reality Winner is a fascinating one but we must remember that at the center of it all is a young woman who still struggles to navigate through these uncharted territories. She says as much toward the end of the film by professing she is still battling an uphill fight. She has joined the ranks of previous whistleblowers Chelsea Manning, Thomas Drake, and Edward Snowden, a group she never intended to be part of. While there isn’t any “new” information shed on Reality that isn’t already accessible on Google, the documentary is still an engaging story and recounts a historic moment in American politics.

Ironically, in June of 2023, Donald Trump was also indicted under the Espionage Act for his possession of classified documents, just like Reality five years prior.

Codebreaker Films / 94 minutes / English