Chapter fifty-four: Doubt

Hi everybody! Where I live, the sun is shining and has been for the past few days. I wonder, does that have anything to do with any recent government events? ((; Probably not, but that's how I look at it since we've certainly made a lot of uplifting historical strides just in this past week alone.

Speaking of history, this week's movie is called Doubt. The plot, I learned, is entirely fictional, but it represents a time in history, as well as a scenario we sometimes hear in today's news. From 2008, it's about a Catholic School experiencing the midst of integration during 1964. The school's principal, Sister Aloysius (Meryl), has admitted their first black student, Donald Miller (Joseph Foster.) He wants to be a priest himself, so Donald becomes an altar boy during Sunday morning mass. By doing so, Donald looks for mentorship from the school's most beloved priest, Father Flynn (Philip Seymour Hoffman.)

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A word about the school's dynamic: Sister Aloysius is very strict; there is no messing with her. Those who offset her disposition are Father Flynn and Donald's teacher, Sister James (Amy Adams.) Father Flynn is known to not go by every role and is by far the most lenient adult at the school, which favors him amongst students. Despite knowing this, Sister Aloysius bites her tongue since, in terms of the Catholic hierarchy, Father Flynn is her superior. Meanwhile, Sister James is quite young and soft-spoken. While she takes her teaching job seriously, Sister Aloysius is far more uptight and is less open to modern-day inventions like the ballpoint pen than Sister James.

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So, Father Flynn continues to act as Donald's ally, even after his position as an altar boy is taken into question following suspicion that he drank the altar wine (likely under Father Flynn's direction.) When Father Flynn asks to see Donald during class time, and Donald returns looking flushed, Sister James has an inkling that this is a sign of inappropriate behavior that could mean something more. She takes the hunch to Sister Aloysius, who takes it seriously and prioritizes the matter after Father Flynn dodges her questions.

This leads to a gut-wrenching conversation between Sister Aloysius and Donald's mother (Viola Davis.) With two acting dynamites, It's a ten-minute scene that is really the heart, soul, and gem of the film. I promise not to spoil it, but afterward, Sister Aloysius takes matters into her own hands upon realizing that Donald's mother is only going to shove the problem under the rug.

When Sister Aloysius and Father Flynn meet in her office again, she confronts him with knowledge of his past. This agitates him, and they get into a heated argument. Father Flynn denies the allegations and tells her that she overstepped, but Sister Aloysius keeps pressing for answers. It's cinematically brilliant. I'd be remiss if I didn't tell you that I memorized it and acted it out (poorly) the next day.

Okay, okay, so if you've stayed with me thus far, hang on; in the end, this film comes down to a good ole' mind trick. Following his argument with Sister Alyousis, Father Flynn resigns from his priest position at the school. But, the next day, Sister Aloysius, despite having her way, confides to Sister James,

"I have doubts."

The reason she has such doubts is that she was making up allegations from Father Flynn's past. She never actually made any calls to nuns from his previous schools! Father Flynn ultimately fell for a trap that didn't exist!

I apologize for that spoiler, but you have to understand that when I realized that, my mind was blown. I hope that by using the bold font and exclamation points, I've conveyed that message. For me, it was one of those movies where you watch it, and then it's over, leaving you like, "Huh, that's it?!" It's so good! As evidence for my claim, Meryl, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Viola Davis, Amy Adams, and the screenplay itself all received an Oscar nomination.

As always, thank you for the entertainment, Meryl.