A new editor of The Boston Globe, Marty Baron (Liev Schreiber) has a major assignment for a team of journalists. A priest, John Geoghan, was accused of molesting more than 80 boys which caught the eye of the public. Due to the popularity of Catholicism in Boston, this would be no easy task. Editor Walter “Robby” Robinson (Michael Keaton) and his team take a look into the past by interviewing former victims and perpetrators. As a deadline approaches, worry of potential backlash causes some delay. However, the reporter make it their mission to blow up a secret that had been hidden for decades within the Roman Catholic Church.
Spotlight… oh boy. This is a tough movie to digest. Let’s make it simple, it’s a movie about a child sexual abuse scandal. To make it even worse, the perpetrators are those that head the Catholic church. Some background, when my girlfriend and I went to see this movie, we were the youngest by a solid 65 years. It was all old people. We went in blind, not really knowing what it was about or even the background of the real life events. We came to find out that the majority of the old farts in the theater were there to relive something that was a tough time in their lives.
For those who don’t remember or never really cared, the Catholic church was exposed for hiding a major sexual abuse problems that was going on. We’re talking thousands of perpetrators that again consisted of leaders of the church. Thousands and thousands of victims ranging in age, race, gender, etc. It didn’t matter. It was sick fucks who abused the trust they were granted based on the job they had.
So that’s the background, now the story of the movie itself. Again, this is about a team of journalists who broke the story for ‘The Boston Globe’. You have a new editor who is stepping into one of the biggest and most notable newspapers in the United States. Does he come in slowly, hoping to keep the name that the paper has built? Fuck no, he comes in bringing the heat. Boston is a heavy Roman Catholic populated city and this outsider came in without a care in the world. He was there to search for justice despite the fact that it would rock the city itself. It’s a bold strategy, but when you’re a bad ass it doesn’t matter.
On to the team of journalists. We have a team that likes to dig and explore these deeper stories. They’re not concerned about lottery tickets or how the Celtics did. They’re there to find out information that’s not talked about in your neighborhood grocery store. They shine the SPOTLIGHT on the dark stories… get it now? The team itself is made up of individuals who have different ties and views on the church. Sacha has a mother that is still very devoted to the church. Michael was once a practicing member who faded away as he grew older. Walter ‘Robby’ is currently here and there on the matter. However, he acknowledges the benefit of the church. Their faith and views are challenged, a straight punch to the gut. However, they feel that it is their duty to expose the truth… and they do just that.
There are many things that make this movie phenomenal and one thing is the cast. Liev Schreiber plays the editor Marty Baron who kicks this whole thing off. He gives off a no nonsense presence that leads you to believe he is all about reading and writing newspapers, talk about boring. The leader of the ‘Spotlight’ journalism team is Walter ‘Robby’ Robinson played by the great Michael Keaton. Michael’s portrayal does a great job of expressing what a shitty situation he was in. Truly faced with a situation in which doing what was right meant blowing up what most people believed to be good. Definitely a decision I wouldn’t want to make.
The additional members of the team are also portrayed by phenomenal actors and an actress. Mark Ruffalo plays Michael Rezendes. Outside of running a damn marathon throughout the course of the movie, Mark does a great job. You can see the anger and disgust he’s feeling as he uncovers more and more truths. Brian d’Arcy James plays Matty Carroll, a guy who does his job and takes care of his family. Despite his opinion on the matter, he follows the lead of his boss Robby. Last, but not least, we have the beautiful and extremely talented Rachel McAdams playing Sacha Pfeiffer. Rachel’s performance may be the best in the film. With each detail discovered, you can feel it chip away at her character. It’s swallowing your feelings to pursue and publish the truth. Truly a dilemma for one who was a practicing member of the church.
The visuals and sounds of the film are simple, which is what is needed. With such a serious story, we don’t need a bunch of nonsense. I don’t need any cheap ass action scene. There’s no need for exaggeration or over the top details. We don’t need insert overly creepy characters to push a narrative. The story in itself was disturbing and earth shattering. Tell us how it was uncovered and what was uncovered… that’s it. That’s what Spotlight does. Scenes are simple, characters are normal people, reactions are genuine. There’s not a ton of sound, there’s not some amazing soundtrack, there’s none of it because again… this is serious. There is a serious tone surrounding a serious story with very little “Hollywood-ing” which deserves to be applauded.
Spotlight is a movie that gives you insight into a scandal that shocked the world. For those who are religious, especially Roman Catholic, this movie is going to push you. You’ll feel a twinge in your heart as you learn more and more. The sad truth is that it was real, all of it. If you’re interested in knowing the truth in a relatively straight forward method that does a good job representing the dilemma and resulting impact, sit down, shut up and watch. It’s an amazing movie.
*Disclaimer: Based on the content and seriousness of this film, we are altering our rating to refrain from sexual jokes.
Rating: Amazing! (Highest ranking!)
J Shot or Not? 