Review: Film Adaptation of Doubt
John Patrick Shanley's Award-Winning Play Now a Major Motion Picture
Jan 3, 2009
Philip Seymour Hoffman and Meryl Streep lead a stellar cast in the film adaptation of Doubt, the story of a confrontation between a priest and a nun at a Catholic school in 1964 New York.
After 525 performances, Doubt: A Parable closed on July 2, 2006. Now, playwright and director John Patrick Shanley brings his Tony Award-winning stage production to the big screen with impressive results.
While the crux of the film’s conflict comes from an accusation made by Sister Aloysius (Streep) that Father Flynn (Hoffman) may be involved in an improper relationship with a black male student, this plot is merely a conduit for conveying a message to the audience.
It is a message of faith and trust, of tolerance and accepting change, and (obviously) of doubt. Everyone can interpret his or her own meaning from the movie, just like everyone can decide what events actually transpire off screen.
Plot Isn’t the Most Important Element of Doubt
Doubt is one of those stories where the central conflict stems from events unseen by the viewer. In fact, it’s never even made clear that these actions ever occurred. But this is what makes the film so gripping.
The viewer hangs on every word and gesture trying to determine what is truth, struggling to find the answer in one stammered syllable or fleeting glance.
In the beginning, Sister Aloysius is presented as a stern, unfriendly and unlikable nun who disciplines children perhaps more than necessary. Then, suddenly, she becomes the protagonist fighting against Father Flynn, a gentle and comforting soul made out to be a monster because of something he may (or may not) have done.
With no evidence and only the flimsiest of clues, Sister Aloysius makes her case based mostly on intuition, so this is hardly a movie about a priest’s immoral and criminal actions as it is a movie about human emotion.
Play-Turned-Movie Still Feels Like Stage Production
Doubt still feels very much like a play. One could easily remove the Catholic school classrooms and the gymnasium and replace them with stage sets without compromising the story, and this is why the performances from the cast are so important. This is a very dialogue-heavy film, and the actors deliver with subtle greatness.
Sure, Amy Adams (whose previous films include Disney’s Enchanted and Talladega Nights) feels a bit out of place amidst Oscar winners like Streep and Hoffman, but she is right for the supporting role she plays as the timid Sister James.
And though her screen time is limited, Viola Davis also makes the most of her role as the (allegedly) mistreated boy's mother.
The December 5 issue of Entertainment Weekly lists Doubt as one of eight Best Picture favorites for 2008. With “a quartet of fantastic performances” to the film’s credit, EW just might be right.
Score: 8 out of 10
 |
