This is Doubt's background: an era of turbulence, an era of lack of faith.
I am very dissatisfied with a Chinese title like "Child Abuse Suspicious Cloud", which turns the deep meaning implied in the original English words into a simple thrilling suspense. What is Doubt? Doubt and question are also the antonyms of belief.
At the beginning of the film, Father Flynn gave a sermon on "Doubt". The main characters-Father Flynn, Sister James and Sister Aloysius-all appear in this sermon, and the meaning of this sermon is more than that. "Doubt can be a bond as powerful and sustaining as certainty", said Father Flynn. What kind of suspicion is it that can link people together like a certainty? Does the stronger and stronger wind in the film also hint at the powerful power of doubt? The world is surrounded by such conviction, and only doubt can break such a mask. Maybe we will believe that Father Flynn committed the crime at first, but in the end there are more and more doubts. However, even at the end of the movie, we cannot know the truth of this matter; perhaps we can learn from this. Or that details get the conclusion we want, but what if a conclusion is reached? No matter what the conclusion is, or the film is simply regarded as a suspense, it is not what the film hopes, or it should have gone astray; what Shanley wants us to pay attention to is not the conclusion of doubt, but the conclusion. Doubt itself.
Sister Aloysius is a typical traditional Catholic. She strictly abides by all kinds of clear rules and precepts, and resents all changes and innovations. The students are afraid of her, not just because she is the principal. However, she was so kind. She quietly moved her fork to the hands of Sister Veronica, who was about to be invisible, worried that the parish might drive her away after discovering it; I heard that there might have happened between Father Flynn and Donald Miller. After unclear things, I must do my best to protect the health of my students. Under her cold and harsh appearance, there is actually a warm heart. In contrast, Sister James was innocent—she was afraid of the way Sister Aloysius told her to use the portrait of the Pope to monitor students. She always cared about her students, and because of this, she doubted Father Flynn; then she believed Father Flynn's excuses and doubted her previous suspicions. However, the rumors will not be as simple as the change in the attitude of Sister James, but like feathers flying in the sky after piercing a feather pillow, they will always exist in people's whispers.
At this time, the truth of the matter may not be so important anymore. We remember Donald Miller's tearful face when Father Flynn said goodbye to everyone. We remember Miller's mother saying "I'll be standing with my son and those who are good with my son"-what the child needs is just being The tenderness of care. Although Sister Aloysius eventually forced Father Flynn away, he was promoted and appointed as the pastor of another parish. We can recall a fragment in the movie: A group of women in neat black nun costumes sat around the table and ate a simple dinner quietly. Sister James did not dare to leave a trace of residue; and the next moment the camera turned, It was Father Flynn and two other priests feasting on the feast, shaking the syrup in the glass, laughing and talking about women. Such a sharp contrast has already explained the slight opposition between the two groups. The nuns may still adhere to the teachings of the Bible, while the priests of the parish have ignored the rules that should be followed. , The influence of faith has begun to gradually weaken. What Sister Aloysius won in school may be said to be a victory; but in the wider world, is she a victory or a defeat, who can say clearly?
At the end of the movie, Sister James met Sister Aloysius who was sitting alone on a bench in the snow. Sister Aloysius held the cross hidden in her sleeve tightly and wept bitterly. "I have doubts, I have such doubts", what is she doubting at this time? Even if she firmly believed that Flynn did something like that, she still began to doubt whether her actions were correct, and she began to doubt whether her principles were correct-because truth and justice are sometimes such beautiful and dangerous things that require extra caution. Treated, and perhaps she herself did not expect that her persistence in her beliefs would have caused such a result. In contrast, how about Father Flynn? His evasive eyes, side-by-side defense, and overly angry self-protection made some things clear. We can guess one story or another; he knows that some sins can not be released through confession. Yes, these doubts about the sins of the soul or the heart or the divine have always been deeply rooted in his heart. In this crisis of faith, Sister Aloysius and Father Flynn, who are on opposite sides of the truth, have lost their direction, because what they suspect is very close to the faith itself. This bond is indeed as strong as faith, but it is full of too much bitterness and entanglement. Even if we look at such doubts, doubts arise in our hearts: Is this doubt good or bad for us? However, even sometimes, we don’t even know what we are really doubting. Under such circumstances, how can we know the meaning of doubt for us?
I first knew about this movie not because the original author John Patrick Shanley wanted to adapt and direct his own Pulitzer Prize drama, but because of the cast of Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams and Viola Davis. They did not disappoint my expectations. It is often said that the deliberate traces in Streep's performance are too heavy, but I have never felt so; just for this movie, she is perfect in the portrayal of Sister Aloysius, and she expresses this seemingly in such a calm manner. The enthusiasm in the heart of the bossy and cruel nun. The conversation between her and Miller’s mother, played by Viola Davis, on the road made people feel that she cares so much about all the children in this school; and the last confrontation between her and Philip Seymour Hoffman in the principal’s office, two countless The head-on conflict between the actors in the performance category is really the most exciting and even exciting section of the whole film. What is a hot show? This is the show! I mentioned in Frost/Nixon before that the performances of Langela and Sheen in that movie are so precise or even too exquisite that they can be used as textbooks; the Streep and Hoffman in Doubt are completely different: How can someone learn from such a shocking and natural-looking performance?
Shanley's adapted script is similar to the original drama, retaining the characteristics of a small venue and refined characters-the original drama actually only has four characters: Aloysius, James, Flynn and Mrs. Miller. And the scene transition of Flynn before leaving in the church was amazing. The three simple scenes of Father Flynn, Donald Miller and Mrs. Miller tell the audience how much information. Howard Shore's original soundtrack is very pleasant to listen to, and it seems that there are some suspense films of his old profession in it, which is quite interesting.
This is not a very intense movie, but after watching it, it can make people think about some questions, such as the doubts and beliefs implied by the doubts clearly written in the title. Even if these are some doubts that can't be concluded without breaking the scalp, the director's intention has been achieved-what we need is not the truth, but the doubt. Shanley said, "You can never be certain about one thing."
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