Movie Review: Ode to the fourth estate

05 February 2016 - 02:59 By Tymon Smith

Films about journalists are tricky. Reading documents, talking to people and fighting with editors, these are not exactly the easiest things from which to make exciting cinema. The gold standard is still Alan J Pakula's All the President's Men, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.Tom McCarthy's Spotlight, an examination of the investigation into sexual abuse by priests in Boston in 2001, isn't as inventive or as nail-biting as Pakula's movie but it's elegantly told and held together by an excellent cast ensemble.The title refers to the name of the investigative unit at the Boston Globe who, under direction from their new editor Marty Baron (Liev Schreiber) began investigating allegations of abuse by priests in 2001. While their investigation was interrupted by the events of September 11 that year, when the stories were published in early 2002 they led to a chain reaction that rocked the Catholic Church.As the four members of the investigation team, Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams, Michael Keaton and Brian D'Arcy James give strong performances and keep the audience with them on a long, often frustrating but ultimately worthy journey. They're given first-class support by Mad Men's John Slattery and the always useful Stanley Tucci. The script also manages to pull off the difficult trick of not revelling in the sordid details of the abuse, focusing instead on the system and communal attitudes that allowed a terrible secret to remain hidden for so many decades.While we root for our reporter heroes we also sympathise with the harsh realities that they're forced to confront about their own failures and culpability. The film celebrates the kind of diligent, persistent and slowly percolating type of investigative reporting that already, only 15 years later, is less and less part of the world of newspapers in the age of social media.It's definitely one of the best examples of the genre in a while and McCarthy holds it all together with an assured sense of how to balance suspense and human drama. The final product is not just an ode to the fourth estate but also a satisfying detective story, courtroom drama and procedural that sidesteps sensationalism without smacking the audience over the head with the righteous indignation that's the inevitable but correct response to the story it brings to light.What others sayA gripping detective story and a superlative newsroom drama. New York TimesLike any good reporting job, it slowly builds momentum from nothing, gathering disparate bits of information into an emotional juggernaut of a story. The AtlanticAlso openingTHE FINEST HOURSA solid film that bolsters its innately compelling narrative with effectively low-key performances, some genuinely thrilling sequences and only a few moments that lean towards hokeyness. Peter Sobczynski, rogerebert.comTHE DRESSMAKERIt's hard to get behind Kate Winslet's revenge-through-fashion escapade when the whole thing is falling apart at the seams. Tim Robey, © The Telegraph13 HOURS: THE SECRET SOLDIERS OF BENGHAZIA barrage of noisy and largely indecipherable action. Mark Kermode, theguardian.com..

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