‘Spotlight’ marks departure for director Thomas McCarthy

While "Spotlight" (to be released Nov. 6) deals with the complexities of child molestation, it is ultimately not a film about trauma or morality but rather about institutions and the individuals who work within them. For director Thomas McCarthy, it’s a productive departure from the understated indie comedy-dramas such as "The Station Agent" (2003) and "Win Win" (2011) that have earned him critical acclaim in the past but ran the risk of becoming formulaic. Based on the true story of the 2001 sexual abuse scandal in Boston’s Catholic Church and the team of Boston Globe reporters whose investigations brought the abuse to light, "Spotlight" does, in fact, have a dose of humor here and there. Overall, however, it bares more similarity to the work of a director like Bennett Miller -- of "Moneyball" (2011)  and "Capote" (2005) -- a master of the fact-based drama, than it does to McCarthy’s trademark mixture of quirk and melancholy.

Writers McCarthy and Josh Singer do a good job handling the real-world material, in which an investigation into a series of sexual assaults by Catholic priests turns into the uncovering of a hard truth that no one in Boston wants to hear: that high-ranking clergymen have known about prolific sexual abuse for decades and have chosen to cover it up. The film achieves a difficult balance. It does not try to bite off more than it can chew, yet it does not oversimplify. The viewer must remain focused, remembering who’s who and listening to all the details in the film’s fast-paced dialogue. It may get confusing at times, but this works in the film’s favor. Every scene offers up new information -- sources end up knowing more than they let on, and important documents reveal shady cover-ups -- but, in turn, raises many new questions.

"Spotlight" boasts strong performances from Michael Cyril and Paul Guilfoyle as victims of childhood assault who come forward to speak to journalists Michael Rezendes (Mark Ruffalo) and Sacha Pfeiffer (Rachel McAdams), but the audience never wholly identifies with the victims' struggles -- the journalists are our protagonists. On the one hand, this is regrettable -- some viewers may leave feeling that the film glazed over the trauma experienced by survivors of abuse. However, the film ultimately chooses to focus on the process of investigative journalism and what its role in society should be, and it does so elegantly.

Michael Keaton does an impressive job as Walter “Robby” Robinson, the head of the Spotlight team (the name of the Globe's investigative unit). Fresh off a successful comeback, thanks to "Birdman" (2014), Keaton leaves the wonkiness behind and appears as an aging journalist dealing with a hefty mixture of idealism, regret and ambition. He manages a difficult feat for big-name actors -- he looks like a regular person. This is a bit harder for McAdams, but she does a good job making what is regrettably a somewhat less-developed role into a memorable one. We get much more insight into the personal life (or lack thereof) and motivations of her colleague Rezendes as a frazzled, career-minded yet idealistic bachelor who lives on pizza, beer and coffee. Other noteworthy performances include John Slattery -- "Mad Men" (2007-2015) -- as a world-weary editor providing some comic relief with well-timed one-liners and Stanley Tucci as Mitchell Garabedian, a lawyer who represents child survivors of sexual assault, actually carrying the film in some places by keeping the audience guessing as to the character’s true motives.

While "Spotlight" is not a perfect film, it is one of the best so far this year. It deals with its sensitive subject matter in a clear-cut way but manages to add layers of complexity in unexpected ways, raising almost as many questions about the Boston Globe as it does about the Catholic Church. It indulges in its setting in a way that never feels postcard-perfect (this is a good thing), and is still sure to please a Boston crowd as well as those who’ve never set foot in New England. All in all, "Spotlight" represents a promising moment for director McCarthy -- hopefully he’ll continue to try new things. Who knows, this year it might just earn him an Oscar nomination.