In February 2016, Spotlight beat out The Revenant, Martian, Room, Mad Max, Bridge of Spies, Brooklyn and The Big Short for Best Picture of the Year at the Oscars. Spotlight refers to the group of investigative reporters who work for The Boston Globe. The group has been there since the 1970 and will often spend months working on a single story. In 2001, Marty Baron (Liev Schreiber) comes in from Florida as their new editor-in-chief and asks the current team to put their latest investigation on hold and look into allegations of a Catholic priest's sexual abuse against a minor and the potential cover-up. Retiring editor Walter "Robbie" Robinson (Michael Keaton) and his team of reporters are hesitant at first, considering Baron to be an outsider just trying to stir things up. Eventually Robbie and his investigators Michael Rezendes (Mark Ruffalo), Sacha Pfeiffer (Rachel McAdams), and Matt Carroll (Brian d'Arcy James) agree to the story and find the truth is much worse than one priest and one child.
In their pursuit of the truth, the Spotlight team must dig deeper and reach higher to discover just how much the Archdiocese knows about the scandal and what has, or more importantly has not, been done to eliminate such abuses. While doing so, they try desperately to keep their findings a secret until they are ready to release their story so as not to be beat to the punch by competing agencies. Their challenge grows as it's not just other news organizations they have to worry about, but powerful religious and political forces that will try to shut down their story.
Ruffalo and McAdams earned Oscar nominations for their supporting roles and Tom McCarthy was nominated for his work as the film's Director. McCarthy and partner Josh Singer won the Oscar for best original screenplay. The preview looks powerful, disturbing and awful. The all-star cast looks like they will not disappoint in their performances and the story is one that would tear at anyone with a heart. My only concern is the potential for deep lulls in the movie pulling the investigation and interviews together for their story over the course of the 2 hour and 8 minute film. I'm giving Spotlight an anticipatory 3.5 stars. I have a feeling it will be entertaining, moving and bold, but probably one of those films that seeing it once or twice is enough without feeling the need or desire to own it. Am I right? We shall see.
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