Spotlight waited too long to turn the light on

Rating: 5/10 (20 January 2016)

Another 2015 big name ensemble piece, with a heavy storyline, Spotlight was sure to be a brilliant film, until it wasn't. Directed by Tom McCarthy, Spotlight brought together Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Liev Schreiber, and Stanley Tucci to tell the true life story of how a writing team on the Boston Globe first broke the sex abuse scandal within the Catholic Church. As a Roman Catholic, I expected to be disgusted, saddened, and perhaps angry at the events that were to take place on screen. Instead, I was simply stricken by how badly scratched my favorite watch has become.
Taking place within the confines of the overtly Catholic Boston, Massachusetts, any egregious claims against the Catholic Church is going to be outright denied and silenced. With the urging of a new editor, Marty Baron (Liev Schreiber), the premier investigative team of the Boston Globe's known as Spotlight, is propelled to examine the claims of sexual abuse against young boys at the hands of their priests. Coyly led by Walter 'Robby' Robinson (Michael Keaton), the team acts on the scarce archived clippings they have to see if there is anything to the allegations. Mike Rezendes (Mark Ruffalo), is the forceful hothead with the most screen time, clearly trying to settle his own score with the Catholic Church. Mike's constant contact with the tight-lipped lawyer Mitchell Garabedian (Stanley Tucci), representing the victims, is strained as Garabedian reveals that he has sent material to the Boston Globe in the past and been ignored. Sacha Pfeiffer (Rachel McAdams), another member of the team makes headway interviewing victims and former priests discovering that one of the men who oversees a victim's support group has also, years before, sent information to the Globe only to be ignored. The obvious resistance to the story from the community does not remain outside the Globe's walls. Through an intense scene of dialogue between the writers and editors, Robby reveals that it was he who ignored the information being sent to the Globe years before. Trying to make things right now, Robby goes after all leads with a fierce intensity. As evidence mounts, the team is driven to expose what too many people are content in keeping a well-known secret.
Typically, a film bogged down almost from the beginning by poor pacing, is going to be filled with rich dialogue. This is not the case for this film; Spotlight, is slow with very sparse, elementary dialogue throughout. Michael Keaton and Stanley Tucci both give excellent performances (but when don't they?) Mark Ruffalo's Mike was insufferably overacted and took on far too many distracting nuisance, for instance, I know that Ruffalo can act in an entire movie only speaking through pursed lips. Rachel McAdams, who I tend to like watching, also tried too hard to be an investigative journalist, complete with spastic head movements and darting eyes, and forgot to be an actress. All of these intricacies that I'm sure the talented actors were using to lend realism to their characters were incredibly distracting and removed me from much of the film.
It's difficult when you leave a film you were looking forward to and expected to enjoy and being disappointed. It's even more difficult when you are a fan of the snubbed Carol, unable to comprehend how a masterpiece was overlooked but the Academy found a place for Spotlight. This film is one that if you skip, you won't miss and probably won't be talked about again, unlike some of the other Best Picture nominees.