Doubt

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Doubt

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Doubt

Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Viola Davis, Alice Drummond

Set in 1964, this film, based on Director John Patrick Shanley's play of the same name, centers on a nun who confronts a priest after suspecting him of abusing a black student. He denies the charges, ...( read more  read more... )and much of the quick-fire dialogue that follows tackles themes of religion, morality, and authority.

Id: 10975287

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Doubt Recent Reviews
  • stuartb1234
    October 7, 2009
    stuartb1234
    Decent thriller which is brilliantly acted by all those in it.
  • RiderOfTheStorms
    October 3, 2009
    RiderOfTheStorms
    THe performances and the writing of this film is nothing short of amazing
  • binky013
    September 28, 2009
    binky013
    Okay, this is a test. Name the last film you saw where that Catholic Church came out smelling like a rose. You have 10 seconds . . . . . . . . . . Time's up. Me, I can't think of one -- although I did see Rossellini's The Flowers of St. Francis (Francesco, giullare di Dio)...( read more) last night, so that's one borderline case -- feels like a bad title translation, huh?

    Well, Doubt is going to do nothing to bolster the reputation of the Catholic Church. It's an ugly movie with a cheesy did-it-happen "suspense" motif -- and who cares anyway? Like Morgan Freeman, Meryl Streep can automatically class up any project, no matter how dismal a piece of Borat it may be, and she definitely works her "aura" magic for this thing, casting her energetic glow of intelligence over the whole superficial mess. Even with delivering the cheesiest line of the whole project at the very end, she still manages to keep you from laughing at the tortured way she employs the final word "doubt(s)" to tie into the title -- just in case you forgot what the title was while this movie bored you to sleep. Two stars for Streep.
  • katharinec
    July 18, 2009
    katharinec
    OMG! This or Rachel Getting Married should have gotten best picture. What a cast, what incredible acting, what incredible dynamics, what subtext, what tensions, so many themes, what an important topic, what ambiance, gosh - I've seen this twice and I loved it both times. AWESOME!
  • AgentLexi2132
    July 12, 2009
    AgentLexi2132
    ''I have doubts. I have such doubts.''

    Set in 1964, Doubt centers on a nun who confronts a priest after suspecting him of abusing a black student. He denies the charges, and much of the play's quick-fire dialogue tackles themes of religion, morality, and authority.

    Me...( read more)ryl Streep: Sister Aloysius Beauvier

    ''Doubt can be a bond as powerful and sustaining as certainty. When you are lost, you are not alone.''

    Doubt is the mystery of whether or not a priest (Philip Seymour Hoffman) is guilty of molesting an altar boy. The priest's primary accuser is Sister Aloysius, the tyrannical principal of the Catholic school that provides Doubt its location. Watching Hoffman and Streep spar is like watching two professional craftsman at their peak, and fans of exquisite acting should waste no time in seeing the battle of wills and the wrath of unknowing . The movie purposely never clarifies the ambiguity of the charges, is in fact Hoffman's priest truly guilty of something, or is Sister Aloysius simply on a mad witch hunt? Streep's character is the most complex and haunted. From one perspective, she's a nearly maniacal dryed up angry, husk of a woman, intent on ruining a man's life and career for no clear reason. However, if her accusations are legitimate, she's a sort of hero, demanding justice from a male-dominated world bent on being superior, bent on following the rules and keeping secrets, secret regardless of fact or indeed fiction. Streep's performance is the real masterpiece here, she is in fire in and years of experience are on show for us to marvel at in Doubt.
    A strict taskmaster, her character relishes her role as the upholder of tradition, rejecting such modern devices as ballpoint pens and the singing of secular songs at Christmas like Frosty the Snowman which she equates with pagan magic.

    According to a report commissioned by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, over four thousand clerics were accused of sexual abuse during the past fifty years. Although approximately thirty percent of these accusations were not investigated because they were unsubstantiated, given the proclivity of the bishops to cover up these incidents, the figures are widely suspected to be underestimated. What may be lost in the discussion of statistics about sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, however, is an understanding of the humanity of the people involved or the complexities of the circumstances.

    This matter is covered in Doubt, based on Shanley's personal experiences at Catholic School, the film explores not only the issue of possible sexual abuse but conservative versus progressive religious values and how far one can rely on suspicion in the absence of proof. Set in 1964, one year after the Kennedy assassination, Sister Aloysius Beauvier is the dragon lady of St. Nicholas school in the Bronx.

    Father Flynn: Where is your compassion?
    Sister Aloysius: Nowhere you can get at it.

    Amy Adams receives the pivotal role of a young, innocent nun who first brings her suspicions about the priest to her superior, and then sees them become Frankenstein's monster. In many ways, Adams' character is us, the audience, placed in the position of having to come to a conclusion on our own when empirical evidence is lacking. Adams' role is the least showy, but she does much with it.
    Also Viola Davis, who, in merely five minutes, decimates the audience with some shocking conclusions of her own as the altar boy's mother. The insulated, hushed world of the Catholic Church is blown wide open by this struggling mother, who's seen more of the world than any of the priests and nuns sheltered behind the church's walls, and who puts the film's running themes of racial and gender inequality into harsh perspective.

    The central battle in Doubt in many forms comes down to each individual's view of the world and his or her ability to accept the ambiguity of day to day life. There's a lot about the world we will never know and much about our futures we'll never be able to shape or plan. So what's better -- anticipating the worst and therefore being prepared when it comes? or believing in the best and running the risk of being disappointed when it fails to arise? The story makes us wonder, and rather than give us answers needlessly, it let's our minds conclude our own solutions.

    Father Brendan Flynn: I can fight you.
    Sister Aloysius Beauvier: You will lose.
  • judicemontana
    December 25, 2009
    judicemontana
    -"Are we here to talk about the Christmas Pagent or this?"
    - "This"
    The Highlight of the movie was really Merl Streep's preformaace time and time again I am astonished at what she can do. Now the dialouge in this movie was simply perfect loved the fact that her character was so...( read more) frank and that little to no emphasis was put on religious aspects (opposite to my fears). The length of the movie felt almost too short, but hey better that than something which seems to be dragging on for an eternity! Merry Christmas Everyone!
  • GetToKnowMe121
    December 25, 2009
    GetToKnowMe121
    Doubt is an excellent movie from start to finish. It has a pretty simple plot, but it's very well written. Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, and Phillip Seymour Hoffman all gave brilliant performances.

    There may be those who aren't interested in this subject matter, but I was very ...( read more)intrigued by it. I found it interesting seeing the church school system, which was a very different atmosphere than where I went to school. Also the concept of being certain beyond a shadow of a doubt. I'm not entirely sure what I would have done, had I been in this same situation. It certainly gives you a lot to think about.
  • jonggrepo
    December 23, 2009
    jonggrepo
    "There is no evidence. There are no witnesses. But for one, there is no doubt. "

    The outstanding performances by the actors were enough to give me goosebumps. Without the powerful performances, the film would've been boring. I stayed awake because of the heart-stopping arguments...( read more) of the nun (Meryl Streep) and the priest (Philip Seymour Hoffman). Amy Adams and Viola Davis were great, too.
  • rusky0
    December 20, 2009
    rusky0
    Hmm. Awkward!

    Sister James: How can you be so sure that he is lying?
    Sister Aloysius Beauvier: Experience.
    Sister James: You just don't like him! You don't like it that he uses a ballpoint pen. You don't like it that he takes 3 lum
    ...( read more)ps of sugar in his tea. You don't like it that he likes Frosty the Snowman and you are letting that convince you? Of something that's terrible... Just terrible...
    Sister James: [Exasperated] Well I like Frosty the Snowman!
  • JediAlex
    December 15, 2009
    JediAlex
    A captivating drama! The scenes with Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman were amazing.
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