Spotlight

Spotlight

 (2015)

A Review by Grant Kanigan

Directed by: Tom McCarthy

Written by: Tom McCarthy & Josh Singer

Starring: Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton,

              Rachel McAdams, John Slattery,

              Stanley Tucci, Liev Schreiber

              Billy Crudup & Brian d'Arcy James

Rating: 14A

Release Date: November 20th, 2015

Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams, Michael Keaton & Brian d'Arcy James get to work in Spotlight
© 2015 - Open Road Films

     There are very few truly 'great' films. Art is subjective, and so is entertainment. As a critic, it's continuously difficult to assign ratings to films which vary in subject matter, entertainment value, and originality. Who is to say that The Martian is a better film than Animal House; Fight Club is more meaningful than Toy Story; or that When Harry Met Sally is better than the original Die Hard? Each film fills its own niche; at home in a unique cinematic environment. I'd say all are brilliant, entertaining films, and would give them each a five star rating, even though they're completely different. Yet, for all of cinema's oddities and experiments, I do think there are cinematic experiences that tower over the rest; films with truly important subject matter, that treat their stories with dignity, heart, intelligence and credibility. Schindler's List, is one of those films. Above and beyond almost all other movies, Speilberg's masterpiece is a testament to the power of the human spirit, and the human condition, showing people who refuse to give up hope in the face of insurmountable hopelessness. Although I regularly give five star ratings to films, none have ever lived up to the essentiality of Schindler's List. Until now. Tom McCarthy's Spotlight is the best film of the year, and one of the most important stories ever put to screen. 

     Spotlight follows a group of tight-knit journalists who work for a special investigative reporting team at the Boston Globe. Led by journalism veteran Walter Robinson, (Michael Keaton), the group spends months working on a single story, meticulously researching and fact checking until they have an iron-clad, (often explosive), report on a single, important issue. Each has their own strength; Michael Rezendes, (Mark Ruffalo), is passionate, Sacha Pfeiffer, (Rachel McAdams), is a brilliant interviewer, and Matt Carroll, (Brian d'Arcy James), is a intelligent and thorough researcher. Together, they form a journalistic juggernaut to be reckoned with. However, with the turn of the century rolling past, ushering in the age of Internet journalism, and their laurels getting increasingly comfortable, the team is slowly becoming stagnant. It's not until their new editor, Marty Baron, (Liev Schreiber), throws a difficult story on their desks, that the group becomes inspired, and enraged. Baron, wanting to not so much increase readership, but subscriber loyalty via excellent reporting, suggests that the group look into the continued allegations against priests in Boston, in regards to child molestation. Starting with a single case, the group soon finds that it's just the tip of the iceberg, and that their research requires shining their 'spotlight' on the darkest recesses of the human soul.

     Films about the sensitive topic of child abuse are few and far between. Sleepers mishandled it with the grace of a Russian diplomat and the subtlety of a sledgehammer. Doubt, while an interesting morality play, was more exploitative than important. Spotlight, conversely, neither exploits it's subject, or shies away from its uncomfortable aspects. The group's research goes into great detail, and leaves the viewer with an extremely unsettling and unshakable doubt in our highest human institutions. Yet, it's important that the film pull no punches, and treat it's subject without sanitization. Like the brilliant author Ray Bradbury once said in his landmark Fahrenheit 451, “We need not to be let alone. We need to be really bothered once in a while. How long is it since you were really bothered? About something important, about something real?” Spotlight is truly bothersome, but it's a feeling that each caring human being needs to experience. The abuse uncovered by the Pulitzer Prize winning investigation by the Spotlight team is not irregular, is not the exception and occurs on a regular basis through a systematic refusal to admit criminal activities by the Catholic Church. In Boston alone, Spotlight reveals, over 1000 cases of abuse were covered up by the Church, and awareness of the coverups went all the way to the top. If people want to truly stop victimization and abuse from occurring, they need to hear the stories like those uncovered in Spotlight. It's not enough to bury one's head in the sand and pretend nothing's happening; to be willfully ignorant, is to be a participant in Hannah Arendt's famous 'banality of evil.' For wounds to heal, we must attend to them. 

     Although Spotlight is truly one of the best films I have ever seen, it's tough to approach it like every other film - it's the rarest of films - something truly enlightening and entertaining. Its story alone is enough to warrant the highest of recommendations. Yet, one must give credit where it's due; the script is whip-smart and taut, the cinematography masterfully calculated, and the acting by the massive ensemble truly spellbinding. Ruffalo's explosion of anger at his colleagues, (see below), Keaton's reserved regret, and McAdams' sensitive and passionate interest all shine through and raise up an already exemplary script. Nearly every actor with more than five minutes of screen time in Spotlight deserves an Oscar nomination at the very least, and Ruffalo deserves credit for his best work yet in a long, brilliant career. Almost every technical facet of Spotlight is on point; look for Spotlight to make some noise this awards season, as it's likely to win Best Picture. 

     Although Spotlight's subject matter is uncomfortable, and likely to bring even the most hardened viewers to tears, it still warrants a viewing. Like the journalists in McCarthy's film show, 'we need not be let alone'. The victims illuminated by Spotlight deserve to tell their story, and we owe it to them, and ourselves, to listen. 

GRANT'S RATING: 5/5 Stars

Mark Ruffalo & Michael Keaton in Spotlight: "It's Time"