MASSACHUSETTS
Wicked Local Marblehead
By Marc J. Wortman
Posted Dec. 17, 2015
MARBLEHEAD
I was a bit reluctant to see “Spotlight,” the true story of the Catholic Church’s priest child-sexual-abuse scandal and cover-up, even though this film is quickly gathering the momentum to be an Oscar front-runner, (recently nominated by the Golden Globes and the SAG Awards, which are reliable predictors for the Academy Awards). Sometimes it’s a tough choice on a Saturday night whether to see an action-packed “popcorn” movie and escape into the fun and fantasy or actually choose to see a serious movie about child abuse.
“Spotlight,” delivers a truthful and non-sensationalized portrayal of one of the biggest scandals in modern history, told from the vantage point of a handful of Boston Globe investigative reporters in 2001. The movie is based on the reporting done by the Spotlight section of the Globe, known for its independent, hard-hitting and in-depth stories. From a pure moviemaking point of view, “Spotlight” is very close to a perfect film, and reminds me of how I felt after watching 2013’s Best Picture Winner, “Argo” – silent and breathless.
The veteran actor and writer Tom McCarthy (who wrote the screenplays for “Up” and “Million Dollar Arm”) is the director of “Spotlight.” He is also the co-writer, along with Josh Singer, of this daring and disturbing script. I predict an Oscar nomination for McCarthy not only for directing but also for Best Screenplay. “Spotlight” is reminiscent of the iconic newspaper movie, 1976’s “All The President’s Men,” which told the story of Nixon and Watergate from the perspective of the two newspaper reporters that untangled the web of lies that ultimately led all the way up to the presidency. In an NPR interview, Tom McCarthy actually referenced several films as direct influences on “Spotlight,” including “All the President’s Men,” as well as Sydney Lumet’s 1982 Oscar-nominated film, “The Verdict.”
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