Bombshell was underwhelming

I agree, especially since the film introduced itself that way at the start. Those decisions establish an ironic, amusing tone about the nature of power, a tone that gradually darkens. 

Bombshell is not on the level of some other current releases that critique power—Richard Jewell, Dark Waters, even The Joker in its way—and it is certainly not as cinematic. Yet it proves engrossing and effective.