Best Picture Nominee Movie Catch Up: Spotlight

Spotlight (2015)

Directed by Tom McCarthy

Screenplay by Josh Singer and Tom McCarthy

Stars: Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Brian d'Arcy James, Liev Schreiber, John Slattery, Stanley Tucci, Billy Crudup,  Jamey Sheridan, and Neal Huff

I remember when the scandal broke with the sexual abuse, and the Catholic Church trying to cover it up. I was disgusted. My views on organized religion were deteriorating at the time and I had good reason. This movie has to be seen.

During the summer of 2001, the Spotlight Team as part of The Boston Globe are urged to do a story about the child sexual abuse case by their new Editor-At-Large, Marty Baron (Schrieber). The team headed by Robby (Keaton) wants to keep the story hush until they are ready to publish the expose. Mike (Ruffalo) and Sacha (McAdams) dig deeper to find something bigger than they thought possible.

This movie is a slow burn. The beginning of the movie was a bit clunky with that opening scene in the 70s. I guess, it was establishing the Church's complicity to the abuse. Sure. We already know what happened. That scene doesn't need to be there.

The actors were solid in the movie. In my opinion, I thought that Mark Ruffalo gave a great performance as Mike. I was confused when I learned that his character was Puerto Rican. Made me side eye the film. Or when Stanley Tucci, playing Mitchell Garabedian, said that he was Armenian. Right.

By the end of the movie, I wanted all the churches to burn. I know that big organizations will be corrupt or try to protect their own people. This movie was gripping.

Rating: 9/10

Big Fish

Big Fish (2003)

Directed by Tim Burton

Screenplay by John August

Based on the novel, "Big Fish: A Novel of Mythic Proportions" by Daniel Wallace

Currently #238 of the Top 250 Films of All Time on IMDb (as of this posting)

Stars: Albert Finney, Billy Crudup, Jessica Lange, Marion Cotillard, Ewan McGregor, Alison Loman, Helena Bonham Carter, Matthew McGrory, David Denman, Robert Guillaume, Steve Buscemi and Danny DeVito

I have been hesitant in seeing Big Fish. Tim Burton has been delivering the same type of movie for over twenty years. The spooky, goth movies are getting on my nerves. This movie is different. It is more fantastical film that usher his hyper colorful films Charlie and the Chocolate Factory or Alice in Wonderland. The movie was nominated for the delightful score by Danny Elfman. At first, I didn't like the movie, but by the end I loved it. Who woulda thunk?

Will Bloom (Crudup) has a strained relationship with his father, Edward (Finney) ever since he was born. His father would tell elaborate stories about the day his son was born, the day Edward meet his wife, Sandra (Lange), etc. Things take a turn for the worst when Edward is dying of cancer. Will and his pregnant wife, Josephine (Cotillard) travel back home to be at his side. Will tries to pry the truth his father. Edward talks about when he was a young Edward (McGregor) meeting a cast of people that he has impacted in some form of fashion.

In the beginning of the movie, I thought I was going to hate this movie, because Edward was telling these outlandish stories. I was in the camp of the Will character. He wanted to get to know the real Edward, not the one from the stories that he tells. As the movie went on, I began to fall in love with the movie. I don't know. The last thirty minutes of the movie, I was a mess. The ending caught me completely off guard. I knew what was going to happen, but something triggered inside me.

This movie showed that an ordinary person can lead an extraordinary life. It doesn't have to fantastical as the stories Edward tells, but you could affect all the people that you have come to know.

My Rating