[Reviewed by Gary Cabana, TheReelReviewer (2 viewings on the big screen)]
“I have such doubts.”
DOUBT
"Doubt" was a Tony award-winning play, and now it's been transferred to the big screen by the playwright (a 2nd-time film-director) along with a veteran cast & crew ... I disagreed with this wisdom (till the 2nd view)!
3-3/4 stars (out of 4 / 2nd view) / 3-1/4 stars (1st view)
[(2008)USA/Miramax/Rated PG-13] - (1 hr 40 min)
[Setting: 1964, St. Nicholas in the Bronx, NYC]
Written & Directed by John Patrick Shanley (from his Play)
Cast ... Lead characters:
Meryl Streep ... Sister Aloysius Beauvier (Nun/School principal)
Philip Seymour Hoffman ... Father Brendan Flynn (Pastor)
Amy Adams ... Sister James (Nun/History teacher)
Viola Davis ... Mrs. Muller (Donald's mother)
Review:
“What do you do when you're not sure?”-Father Flynn
Normally, you don't turn a 2nd-time director loose with this kind of high-powered material, even if it's their own ... or rather, ESPECIALLY if it is their own.
Mainly because writers are very attached to their own "words" (like parentss love their children) and they don't know when to "CUT." Not only is "Doubt" stagey in origin
(it played Broadway with a cast of four), but thematically the film version ranges from schoolboy vs. Principal humor to "witch"-hunting (or pedophile-hunting to be exact).
Maybe playwright John Patrick Shanley's "Pulitzer Prize for Drama" turned the negotiations for director into the dealbreaker even though his only other film (as a director) is "Joe Versus the Volcano" (1990). That's an 18-year gap between directing assignments, hello?
Whatever the reason, something led the misguided studio execs to go against Hollywood's prevailing rule #1: "Never turn a lamb loose among wolves."
"Why?" you may ask.
The first danger is the "intimidation" factor: Newbie director vs. Big-time talents on every level of the creative team.
Are you really going to try to give A-list actors like Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman flack if they try to do things their own way? If Hoffman wants to yell an entire monologue, who's to say "no." And if language expert Streep's thick "New Yawk" accent stands out in every scene (since she's the only one doing it in the film), who will tell her to cease and desist.
Nobody, that's who.
Or how about legendary cinematographer Roger Deakins, a 59 yr. old master who frequently works with the Coen Bros. (because they like inventive photography). Can a playwright-turned-director tell a 7-time Oscar nominee he's spending too much time lighting the Principal's office, and the canted angles are more appropriate for the next "Batman" movie than in a debate drama.
And then there's the idea of creating symbolism from the windy winter weather, looks good on paper but it's just too obvious and too much in the finished product.
Get it?
A film like this really needed a "master" director (Sam Mendes perhaps?) to refine the script, hone the performances, and turn the story from theater to cinema. Shanley is surrounded by masters of filmcraft on every level, but they overwhelm the 2nd time-auteur rather than stengthen the project as a whole. It's as if each dept. head was making their own personl "Doubt" without heeding the work of the others, which is why a strong sure hand is needed to keep all of these creative stallions in check, but sadly it wasn't there.
Luckily, these contradictions merely create an unevenness in style, but they don't kill the film entirely. Shanley's strong suit is as a "writer" and the spoken word carries much of this film for the most part. They say legit play's are written for audiences in love with the sound of the spoken word, and this film is filled with words words words.
On top of that, the movie does "improves" on the play by including a full cast of kids (they were only referred to in the Tony-winning theater version). These kids steal every scene they're in, even when paired against the likes of Amy Adams ("Enchanted"), Hoffman ("The Savages"), and the inestimable Streep (following a miraculous transformation from her tanned, blonded "Mamma Mia" role earlier this year).
It's these kids that bring some welcome comedic moments to the first half-hour of the movie (especially for those familiar with Catholic school). It also offers a nice contrast to the investigation into pedophilia that follows by showing the innocent and not-so-innocent sides of childhood as boys & girls come-of-age.
A master director could have balanced the humor with the drama a bit better, but Shanley's directorial inexperience is salvaged only by his keenly observant scripting and a great cast of veterans and unknowns.
Not a trainwreck by any means, but considering the source material, it might get some kudo's for its stellar cast from patient Oscar voters who don't mind very, talky films.
MUST-SEE for Catholics and parochial school grads!!! Also worth seeing for budding
playwrights and theater geeks, thanks to a fanatically determined performance
from Meryl Streep!
ADDENDUM: 2nd view
The second time I saw "Doubt" most of those nagging little observations I noted at the top quickly faded into the background as I focused on the Pulitzer Prize-winning writing
& superb acting.
Check this one out, it's an Oscar contender without any doubt (sorry, couldn't resist the pun).
“Why do you look like you've seen the Devil?” -Sister Aloysius
Pre-Oscar note: I doubt that Meryl Streep will be stopped from getting her 15th Oscar nomination (for this or "Mamma Mia"), but I'm not sure if it's strong enough for her 3rd win. On the other hand, although a small role (she appears 1 hour into the film), actress Viola Davis could nab her FIRST Oscar nomination, and possibly a win (the same role won a Tony award for the Broadway production). RESULTS: Five Oscar noms - NO wins.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cast ... Supporting characters:
Joseph Foster ... Donald Muller ("Black" Altar boy/age 12/8th grader)
Lloyd Clay Brown ... Jimmy Hurley ("White" Altar boy/8th grader)
Alice Drummond - Sister Veronica
Audrie Neenan - Sister Raymond
MAIN crew:
Original Music by Howard Shore
Cinematography by Roger Deakins
Editor: Dylan Tichenor
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“The dragon is hungry.” -Father Flynn
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Soundtrack
info (mainly religious hymns):
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PRAISE GOD, FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW [Doxology]
Words by: Thomas Ken (1637-1711)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BLAME IT ON THE BOSSA NOVA - Sung by Eydie Gorme (1963)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE FIRST NOEL - Sung by student choir
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MOVIE website
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The play won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Drama
The Broadway play ran for over a year, with 525 performances. The original cast was: Cherry Jones(Sister Aloysius), Brian F. O'Byrne (Father Flynn), Heather Goldenhersh (Sister James) and Adriane Lenox (Mrs. Muller ). All four were nominated for a Tony award. The play won four Tony awards: Best Play, Best Director (Doug Hughes), Best Actress (Jones) and Best Featured Actress (Lenox).
"Doubt" (the movie) will be released on December 12, 2008.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
"I have my Certainty.” -Sister Aloysius
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
“I have such doubts.”
DOUBT
"Doubt" was a Tony award-winning play, and now it's been transferred to the big screen by the playwright (a 2nd-time film-director) along with a veteran cast & crew ... I disagreed with this wisdom (till the 2nd view)!
3-3/4 stars (out of 4 / 2nd view) / 3-1/4 stars (1st view)
[(2008)USA/Miramax/Rated PG-13] - (1 hr 40 min)
[Setting: 1964, St. Nicholas in the Bronx, NYC]
Written & Directed by John Patrick Shanley (from his Play)
Cast ... Lead characters:
Meryl Streep ... Sister Aloysius Beauvier (Nun/School principal)
Philip Seymour Hoffman ... Father Brendan Flynn (Pastor)
Amy Adams ... Sister James (Nun/History teacher)
Viola Davis ... Mrs. Muller (Donald's mother)
Review:
“What do you do when you're not sure?”-Father Flynn
Normally, you don't turn a 2nd-time director loose with this kind of high-powered material, even if it's their own ... or rather, ESPECIALLY if it is their own.
Mainly because writers are very attached to their own "words" (like parentss love their children) and they don't know when to "CUT." Not only is "Doubt" stagey in origin
(it played Broadway with a cast of four), but thematically the film version ranges from schoolboy vs. Principal humor to "witch"-hunting (or pedophile-hunting to be exact).
Maybe playwright John Patrick Shanley's "Pulitzer Prize for Drama" turned the negotiations for director into the dealbreaker even though his only other film (as a director) is "Joe Versus the Volcano" (1990). That's an 18-year gap between directing assignments, hello?
Whatever the reason, something led the misguided studio execs to go against Hollywood's prevailing rule #1: "Never turn a lamb loose among wolves."
"Why?" you may ask.
The first danger is the "intimidation" factor: Newbie director vs. Big-time talents on every level of the creative team.
Are you really going to try to give A-list actors like Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman flack if they try to do things their own way? If Hoffman wants to yell an entire monologue, who's to say "no." And if language expert Streep's thick "New Yawk" accent stands out in every scene (since she's the only one doing it in the film), who will tell her to cease and desist.
Nobody, that's who.
Or how about legendary cinematographer Roger Deakins, a 59 yr. old master who frequently works with the Coen Bros. (because they like inventive photography). Can a playwright-turned-director tell a 7-time Oscar nominee he's spending too much time lighting the Principal's office, and the canted angles are more appropriate for the next "Batman" movie than in a debate drama.
And then there's the idea of creating symbolism from the windy winter weather, looks good on paper but it's just too obvious and too much in the finished product.
Get it?
A film like this really needed a "master" director (Sam Mendes perhaps?) to refine the script, hone the performances, and turn the story from theater to cinema. Shanley is surrounded by masters of filmcraft on every level, but they overwhelm the 2nd time-auteur rather than stengthen the project as a whole. It's as if each dept. head was making their own personl "Doubt" without heeding the work of the others, which is why a strong sure hand is needed to keep all of these creative stallions in check, but sadly it wasn't there.
Luckily, these contradictions merely create an unevenness in style, but they don't kill the film entirely. Shanley's strong suit is as a "writer" and the spoken word carries much of this film for the most part. They say legit play's are written for audiences in love with the sound of the spoken word, and this film is filled with words words words.
On top of that, the movie does "improves" on the play by including a full cast of kids (they were only referred to in the Tony-winning theater version). These kids steal every scene they're in, even when paired against the likes of Amy Adams ("Enchanted"), Hoffman ("The Savages"), and the inestimable Streep (following a miraculous transformation from her tanned, blonded "Mamma Mia" role earlier this year).
It's these kids that bring some welcome comedic moments to the first half-hour of the movie (especially for those familiar with Catholic school). It also offers a nice contrast to the investigation into pedophilia that follows by showing the innocent and not-so-innocent sides of childhood as boys & girls come-of-age.
A master director could have balanced the humor with the drama a bit better, but Shanley's directorial inexperience is salvaged only by his keenly observant scripting and a great cast of veterans and unknowns.
Not a trainwreck by any means, but considering the source material, it might get some kudo's for its stellar cast from patient Oscar voters who don't mind very, talky films.
MUST-SEE for Catholics and parochial school grads!!! Also worth seeing for budding
playwrights and theater geeks, thanks to a fanatically determined performance
from Meryl Streep!
ADDENDUM: 2nd view
The second time I saw "Doubt" most of those nagging little observations I noted at the top quickly faded into the background as I focused on the Pulitzer Prize-winning writing
& superb acting.
Check this one out, it's an Oscar contender without any doubt (sorry, couldn't resist the pun).
“Why do you look like you've seen the Devil?” -Sister Aloysius
Pre-Oscar note: I doubt that Meryl Streep will be stopped from getting her 15th Oscar nomination (for this or "Mamma Mia"), but I'm not sure if it's strong enough for her 3rd win. On the other hand, although a small role (she appears 1 hour into the film), actress Viola Davis could nab her FIRST Oscar nomination, and possibly a win (the same role won a Tony award for the Broadway production). RESULTS: Five Oscar noms - NO wins.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cast ... Supporting characters:
Joseph Foster ... Donald Muller ("Black" Altar boy/age 12/8th grader)
Lloyd Clay Brown ... Jimmy Hurley ("White" Altar boy/8th grader)
Alice Drummond - Sister Veronica
Audrie Neenan - Sister Raymond
MAIN crew:
Original Music by Howard Shore
Cinematography by Roger Deakins
Editor: Dylan Tichenor
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“The dragon is hungry.” -Father Flynn
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Soundtrack
info (mainly religious hymns):
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PRAISE GOD, FROM WHOM ALL BLESSINGS FLOW [Doxology]
Words by: Thomas Ken (1637-1711)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BLAME IT ON THE BOSSA NOVA - Sung by Eydie Gorme (1963)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE FIRST NOEL - Sung by student choir
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MOVIE website
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The play won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Drama
The Broadway play ran for over a year, with 525 performances. The original cast was: Cherry Jones(Sister Aloysius), Brian F. O'Byrne (Father Flynn), Heather Goldenhersh (Sister James) and Adriane Lenox (Mrs. Muller ). All four were nominated for a Tony award. The play won four Tony awards: Best Play, Best Director (Doug Hughes), Best Actress (Jones) and Best Featured Actress (Lenox).
"Doubt" (the movie) will be released on December 12, 2008.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
"I have my Certainty.” -Sister Aloysius
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++