Excellent Story and Performances

Rating: Null/10 (11 February 2016)

Spotlight (2015)
**** (out of 4)
Excellent movie based around the Boston Globe's investigation into various accounts of sexual abuse that was hidden by the Catholic Church.
Obviously, SPOTLIGHT doesn't deal with a fun subject but the film is the perfect example of how to make a great movie. Take a great director and give him a great script to work with. Then you get a great cast to deliver great performances and bring those lines of dialogue and story to life. Why aren't more movies made like this? I'm going to guess it's because these types of films aren't going to bring in hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office but if you're a fan of cinema then SPOTLIGHT offers a whole lot.
The subject matter itself is something that will make you blood boil but director Tom McCarthy handles it in a very classy way. The screenplay is so great because it really comes across as a blueprint on how journalism should work and obviously while watching the film you're going to think back to movies like THE FRONT PAGE and ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN. The story here is one that certainly grabs your attention and McCarthy does an excellent job at building up the tension as the reporters race against a clock but also race to find more victims to try and build case.
Again, the subject matter isn't pretty but the film perfectly blends the drama of the victim's story as well as the drama and moral clause that people like reporters have. It certainly doesn't hurt that we're given an excellent cast that bring the material to life. Michael Keaton turns in another wonderful performance as the main guy who maybe connected to the crimes. Liev Schreiber has never been better than he is here as the man who pushes for the investigation. Then you have a tender performance from Rachel McAdams as well as Stanley Tucci delivering his finest work in years. With that said, Mark Ruffalo steals the film with his remarkable performance as the main reporter trying to bust the creeps who hid the crimes. The emotion, rage and power in his performance jumps right off the screen.
SPOTLIGHT is technically quite flawless as the cinematography, the score, editing and every other aspect are terrific. Of course, a movie like this works on an intelligent level because it asks questions to the viewer and doesn't always just spell out the answer. The movie manages to be highly entertaining from start to finish and it really packs a punch without having to resort to preaching.