I liked this film, thought it was a well done solid film. But I am afraid I can't say anything more than that, it is very documentary like which can be it's biggest strength (a very fact driven plot heavy film) or it's biggest weakness (characters feel cold and distant and other than the plot nothing really impresses, also quite bland in the visuals department). However the characters do start to show some life nearing the end of the film but by that time damage is done it can be hard if not impossible for viewers to differentiate between the reporters for nearly one and a half hour of the film, they all suffer from different faces but same objective syndrome and inadequate effort is made to separate one from the another. Also speaking of run-time, this film is a wee bit over two hours long, editing especially in the first half could have made this film a bit crispier. However I did like the accuracy level in the film regarding the cellphones, ads, electronics and the cars used in 2001; a lot of films these days are becoming very careless in this regard. I would compare it to last year's Foxcatcher another fact driven docu-drama film, solidly acted, but nothing special in the direction, editing and cinematography department, I would still recommend it but no way this film deserves a second watch, you can absorb everything there is to get in a single viewing. All in all, a solid well written docu-drama which will have it's time in the "spotlight" (pun!) this Oscar season and will become "oh that movie about pedo priests" by next year's Oscar season.
Review of Spotlight
