Covering the child molestation church scandal in Boston in 2001, Spotlight is a fantastic look into the reporting behind what happened along with excellent actors and impeccable storytelling.
Remember the days when everyone received a paper newspaper? Newspapers were delivered to your doorstep early in the morning and people spent hours combing through the different sections. It wasn’t all that long ago. It was a mainstay of how society received the news – offline and in print.
Spotlight is about the 2001 investigations at The Boston Globe into the molestation accusations against the local church clergy. When a new managing editor (who is not Catholic and not from Boston) comes to the paper, he directs the “Spotlight team” to look heavily into what could be going on in secret at the Boston Archdiocese. Accusations have continued to float around, but because this is such a sensitive subject and so many Bostonians have an intense loyalty and connection to the church, no one has shined a light on what could be happening to the city’s children.
This is a great movie. With an already poignant subject-matter, you watch as different members of the Spotlight team interview victims, confront some suspected perpetrators, and move carefully and assertively through the red tape that they find at every step. People depend on the church for so much – they believe in the church and their religion – the last thing they want to do is confront any atrocities, much less be part of bringing down an institution that they love and revere.
The ensemble is excellent, with actors like Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Liev Schreiber, John Slattery, and Stanley Tucci to name a few. Each and every one carries their weight, but Mark Ruffalo and Michael Keaton are the two standouts here. The anxiety and inner tension is almost palpable.
One of the things that I loved the most about this film is that it always keeps its eye on the prize. You know the topic and you may even remember what happened in 2001-2002 during this public conversation, but the movie keeps the focus (both blatantly and subtly) on the children. They stay in the spotlight. You may have scenes of interviews between victims and a journalist, but the camera will slowly pan to a group of children outside. The camera is always recognizing how close schools or kids playing in the street are to the accused perpetrators. These vulnerable kids are everywhere.
This drama does a great job of never talking down to the viewer, but presents easy-to-digest information as to what happened and how and when everything took place. There is a nice building of tension throughout the story and it ends with the perfect button. There is also informative text about what happened next and where other sex abuse scandals were found. This is a really good film. Definitely worth your time.
Runtime: 128 minutes
Motion Picture Rating: R
Languages Spoken In The Film: English
Should You Watch It? Yes
Did I Cry? Nope
My Rating: 4/5 Stars
Available: To rent on Prime Video or may be available for free on other streaming platforms
Remember the days when everyone received a paper newspaper? Newspapers were delivered to your doorstep early in the morning and people spent hours combing through the different sections. It wasn’t all that long ago. It was a mainstay of how society received the news – offline and in print.
