Spotlight Parent Guide

In an era where many of us assume journalism is a free service obtainable with a click on the Internet, Spotlight is a stark reminder of what investigative journalism used to be and how this dying profession helped provide checks and balances within our society.

The title of the movie refers to an elite team of reporters within the Boston Globe. Led by Walter Robinson (played by Michael Keaton), journalists Mike Rezendes, Sacha Pfeiffer and Matt Carroll (played by Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams and Brian d’Arcy James) had the luxury of taking the time required to dig deep into an issue. Unlike other reporters who had to meet daily deadlines, the Spotlight team could invest months into their efforts.

While this section of the Boston Globe continues to publish today, this specific movie reflects on a story published in 2002 that revealed a sexual abuse scandal that rocked the Catholic Church.

In a city where Catholicism is the norm (according to the script, 53% of the Globe’s subscriber base is of that affiliation), the press is careful to depict the church in a somewhat positive light. The members of the Spotlight team themselves are all Boston natives, born and raised within the shadow of the religious order. Consequently each carries overt or subconscious sympathies toward the institution. However, the arrival of a new editor at the Globe, brings a more scrutinizing eye. Marty Baron (Liev Schreiber), a man of Jewish descent who was parachuted in from a successful position in Florida, takes the helm at the paper. Not steeped in the same traditions as the others, Baron directs the Spotlight team to follow up on some story threads about a priest previously accused of child molestation. What begins as skeptical curiosity turns into an extensive investigation revealing not only sexual misconduct by clergymen, but efforts by church officials to cover up a growing problem.

Profanities account for the R-rating on this movie, with the sexual expletive used at least five times, along with frequent scatological and religious terms, moderate and mild profanity, and crude slang. Yet, thankfully, the script doesn’t stoop to wallow in salacious details of the sexual abuse, although enough non-graphic information is shared to insure viewers understand the seriousness of the accusations. Instead the focus is placed on the affects this breach of trust and faith has had upon some of the victims. Our heroes, the reporters, create much of the plot’s dramatic momentum as they come to recognize the enormity of the situation and endeavor to find and confirm every lead. Along the way they must face their own inherent biases.

A dialogue heavy film that presents scene after scene of confrontations and revelations taking place in offices and boardrooms, Spotlight‘s fine performances and careful editing work together to create an engaging experience. It’s also commendable that the script includes depictions of how the newspaper itself neglected to look into the issue when it was first revealed to them years earlier. Still, we, the audience, should also remember this is a movie—a theatrical production—not a fact-based documentary. While the sexual molestation is verifiably true, the film industry’s own prejudices toward religion and Catholicism should also be taken into account while watching this based-on-a-true-story screen adaptation.

In reality, the Spotlight journalists revealed an important story that brought awareness to a crucial issue and initiated change. Hopefully it also helped many people heal from past abuse and prevented many more from becoming victims of such devastating violations. Along with revisiting the scandal, the Spotlight movie helps to remind us why serious, investigative journalism needs to be supported by an interested public, and why we should be demanding the maintenance of credible news sources.

About author

Rod Gustafson

Rod Gustafson has worked in various media industries since 1977. He founded Parent Previews in 1993, and today continues to write and broadcast the reviews in newspapers, on radio and (of course) on the Internet. His efforts also include writing and researching media in all its forms and observing how it effects society and culture. He and his wife Donna have four children.