Review of Doubt first published in a February 2009 issue Spark*, the newspaper of Reading University Students’ Union.

Director: John Patrick Shanley
Starring: Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams
Running time: 104 mins

For those who have only seen Meryl Streep in recent summer romp Mamma Mia or the fashion-themed fun of The Devil Wears Prada, John Patrick Shanley’s Doubt is a great window onto some of her more serious performances. This is for the primary reason that Doubt is well and truly Streep’s film, despite what the film’s Oscar nominations might suggest (an acting nomination for Streep, Hoffman and Adams). But this is also one of the main detractions from the film: Streep’s powerful performance (which undoubtedly – pun intended – is excellent) is left to dominate and overshadow the film itself. Adams’ performance is very good, although she seems to maintain a look of anxious trepidation throughout the entire film. Hoffman’s performance follows his usual excellent standards, simultaneously conveying an uncomfortable creepiness and kind benevolence.

The film features some clever subtle moments, one where Sister Aloysius (Streep) forces Sister James (Adams) to eat a piece of gristle that she previously spit out and put on her plate with one piercing look from her beady eyes – conveying the silent power and domination that Sister Aloysius holds over Saint Nicholas School and the rest of the nuns.  The nun who is suffering from sight deterioration placing the figures in the nativity crib at Christmas is also deftly handled. So is the cinematography, with some interesting off-balance and low-angle shots.

However, aside from three very good performances, Doubt fails to deliver on pretty much any other level. The film’s premise is basically all that happens in the film: nun/principal of Catholic school suspects and accuses priest of having a questionable relationship with a student. Doubt tries but never succeeds in escaping from this problem – nothing happens in the film that you haven’t already seen in the trailer. As for the ending: on one hand, the film’s climax which breaks with conventional explorations of mystery (by giving no answer one way or the other whether Sister Aloysius’s suspicions were correct or not) is an interesting one, leaving the audience to work out their own conclusions and judgements. On the other hand however, the film’s ending leaves the audience with a lack of real resolution and ‘closure’, forcing further questions to be asked than any to be answered. For some this would be to the film’s credit, but sadly not for this critic. There is an overriding sense of heavy-handedness in the film’s dialogue and smaller lead-up scenes which begins to grate and eventually becomes very irritating: “it takes a cat to catch a mouse” and “the wind has changed” are both lines that smack of poor writing that scream of try-hard symbolism.

All in all, Doubt marks another great performance from the ever-excellent Streep and Hoffman, and further establishes Adams’ reputation from being a star on the rise. But the overwhelming lack of dynamism and pace makes what could otherwise be a tense and intriguing drama into a tedious and dull 100 minutes. Perhaps Doubt works better on the stage (the film is a celluloid version of Shanley’s own play), but to be frank, I’ve seen enough.

Rating: MMM

Review of Frost/Nixon first published in a January 2009 issue of Spark*, the newspaper of Reading University Students’ Union.

Director: Ron Howard
Starring: Michael Sheen, Frank Langella, Kevin Bacon, Sam Rockwell
Running time: 122 mins

Admittedly I haven’t seen Peter Morgan’s original play, but it really is hard to imagine any medium other than celluloid for which to present the drama played out between Richard Nixon and David Frost in their 1977 televised interviews. The film opens with newsreel footage of the social and political conditions of 1974 and the resignation of President Richard Nixon, then in disgrace following the discovery of the Watergate scandal. For those not familiar with this period in American political history and the events that preceded and followed it, there is helpful narration from characters which form the support teams of both Frost and Nixon. Three years later, Frost embarks on an ambitious project to interview the hated former President.

Before the interviews take place, there are some excellent moments of comedy and drollery, surprisingly more often than not in the form of witty one-liners from Nixon (Frank Langella), delivered with perfect deadpan humour. Sam Rockwell is refreshingly cast against type as James Reston, Jr. researcher keen to uphold the ideals of democracy and freedom, to ultimately procure a confession and apology from the man who he sees has shamed and degraded the presidency. Michael Sheen is very good, mimicking David Frost’s voice and mannerisms exactly. It is Frank Langella’s film though, putting every last ounce of energy into arguably what will be one of the best performances of the year.

Director Ron Howard, it seems, has lost much of the self-indulgent tone displayed in earlier work such as Apollo 13 and A Beautiful Mind, subsequently rendering Frost/Nixon all the more potent and tense as a result. And tension is the unmistakeable motif here, seen from start to finish. Sexual tension seen early-on between ‘playboy’ Frost and new flame Caroline Cushing (Rebecca Hall), economic tension for the financing of the interviews (Frost practically financed the interviews out of his own pocket), and the most important tension of all: that between a disgraced and crooked President and the misled American public that he deceived. At the climax of the fourth interview, we see the broken image of a man, bitterly depressed with self-loathing finally and desperately apologise to the country he lied to – and what a mesmerising moment that is.

Rating: MMMM