"On the Side of the Angels"

Rating: Null/10 (4 March 2016)

In the DVD version of "Spotlight," there is a fascinating bonus segment where we meet the actual Boston Globe reporters whose groundbreaking story of pedophilia within the Catholic church is the subject of this film.
It is not only interesting to learn more about these journalists, but also to hear their own accounts of their research into the case. At the close of the bonus clip, one of the reporters relates that he felt that their efforts were "on the side of the angels" in raising awareness and bringing the truth to light for so many of the victims.
As a film, "Spotlight" is comparable to the journalistic thriller "All the President's Men," which tells the backstory of the two famous Washington Post reporters, Woodward and Bernstein, who broke the Watergate scandal in the 1970s. One of the strengths of "Spotlight" is how the characters of the reporters are individualized. From Liev Shreiber's mild-mannered, soft-spoken editor to Mark Ruffalo's driven, hyperkinetic reporter to Rachel McAdams's thoughtful, intelligent character to Michael Keaton's quirky head of the Spotlight group, the characters were fully realized.
It is especially Keaton's role of Robby Robinson that is integral to one of the film's most successful subplots: the incompetence and myopic work of the Boston Globe staff itself for failing to report the story when they essentially had all of the evidence in their possession for years. Without giving away the ending, it is Keaton's character who holds the key to this important strand of the film that deals with journalistic integrity.
For acting, directing, and screen writing, "Spotlight" is a remarkable collaborative effort. In viewing this film, one can only wonder how many other untold investigative stories never found their way to the light of the public. In one of the bonus segments, the film's director points out how journalism today is turning news into entertainment and that are not even reporters covering state legislatures today. The film focuses on the importance of journalism at the local level, which led to the successful efforts of the Boston Globe that discovered both the enormity of the child abuse cases, but the scope of the cover-up.
This was an extremely thoughtful and provocative film that is deserving of the recognition it has received. This film truly merits its place in the spotlight.