Some nuns are stubborn (Doubt reviewed)
{FILM DIARY}
Doubt (USA, 2008)
Seen: Monday, 16th March 2009 (cinema)
Runtime: 104′
Director: John Patrick Shanley
Cast: Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Viola Davis
Production House: Goodspeed Productions, Scott Rudin Productions
Plot: It’s set in the 1960s in a Catholic school. A nun confronts a priest after suspecting him of abusing a black student.
Scene From The Film
The trailer is in my film spotting post.
Impressions In Short
It’s a small, performance and story-driven kind of film. Like I expected, a bit theatrical.
More About the Film
I thought the story was interesting, with a lot of detail and well-told, but I was a bit let down by the final scene. The great thing about the story is how morally blurred it all is. There is no villain in the film and it’s hard to say who is in the right or even what exactly happened between the priest and the boy. A lot is left to the interpretation of the viewer.
It was, however, very obviously a theatre piece. The whole rhythm of it was quite uncinematic.
As far as the acting went, I think my favourite performances were by the two Oscar-nominated supporting ladies (Amy Adams and Viola Davis) rather than by the leads. But everyone was good. It was just that Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman played it a bit “bigger” and more theatrical. It didn’t matter most of the time, but there were some scenes that got a bit too much - mainly the really dramatic ones when the two of them are alone in the office. They were still both fun to watch though.
Recommended?
Yes, but not very emphatically. Perhaps not for the people who don’t like slow-paced films.