They could have called this one All The Pope’s Men.
After all, in some respects, it’s like a remake of All The President’s Men. Just a different set of scumbags this time around.
For some it was a scandal that shook the world. For others it was the scandal that shook the world. In other words, for some nothing can be more despicable than men of the cloth molesting and raping young children.
And yet that is precisely what these men of the cloth in the Catholic church did. Over and over and over and over again. Not only that but many in the church hierarchy were considerably more rather than less aware of it. And did little or nothing to report it. Let alone stop it.
At least not until it became a scandal.
Of course the other scandal here is how something like this can be turned into a cash cow:
We got two stories here: a story about degenerate clergy, and a story about a bunch of lawyers turning child abuse into a cottage industry.
And then there’s this part:
In real life, by the time the Boston Globe broke the story of the abuse scandal in Boston, the National Catholic Reporter had already been reporting on abuse within the church for seventeen years while other much bigger news outlets had refused to look at it.
Some will argue that this is not about religion so much as corrupt, institutionalized religion. But to the extent that religion is complicit in sustaining sexual repression stories like this will always surface eventually.
It’s also important to note that through religion many, many, many people earn their living. God is their job. So, aside from the part about God there’s the part about bucks. And the part about politics. And, in Boston, the Catholic Church is everywhere.
IMDb
[b]During an interview on NPR’s “Fresh Air,” director Tom McCarthy said that they built a large set to depict many of the Boston Globe offices where parts of the story takes place. When the reporters depicted in the movie first visited the set, they gravitated to the desks where they had been sitting during the writing of the “Spotlight” piece, and many of them started to re-arrange the items on their desks to the way they had been at the time.
During every break, Mark Ruffalo asked the real Michael Rezendes to say his lines for him.
The real Walter Robinson said, “My persona has been hijacked. If Michael Keaton robbed a bank, the police would quickly have me in handcuffs.”
The real Michael Rezendes said, “Watching Mark Ruffalo re-enact five months of my life was like looking into a fun house mirror.”
At the 88th Academy Awards, Spotlight was up for six awards and won two Oscars. It won the first Oscar presented that night for Best Original Screenplay. Then, after losing in the next four categories it was nominated in (Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Film Editing, and Best Director), it won the final Oscar of the evening for Best Picture.[/b]
at wiki: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spotlight_(film
trailer: youtu.be/Zg5zSVxx9JM
SPOTLIGHT [2015]
Written in part and directed by Tom McCarthy
[b]Marty: Did everyone read Eileen McNamara column this weekend?
Helen: That’s the Geoghan case?
Marty: Yeah, what’s the folo on that?
Ben: It…It’s a column, what kind of folo are you thinking?
Marty: Uh… well apparently this priest molested kids in 6 different parishes over the last 30 years and the attorney for the victims, a Mr…
Eileen: Garabedian.
Marty: Thanks Eileen, Mr Garabedian says Cardinal Law found out about it 15 years ago and did nothing.
Paul: Yeah, I think that attorney is a bit of a crank, and The Church dismissed the claim.
Eileen: He-said, she-said.
Marty: Whether Mr Garabedian is a ‘crank’ or not, he says he has documents that prove that Cardinal knew.
Ben: As I understand that those documents are under seal.
Marty: Okay, but the fact remains a Boston priest abused 80 kids, we have a lawyer who says he can prove Law knew about it and we’ve written all of… uh… 2 stories in the last 6 months. This strikes me as an essential story to a local paper, I think the very least we have to go through those documents.
Paul: How would you like to do that?
Marty: Oh uh, I don’t know what the laws are here, but in Florida we would go to court.
Ben: You wanna sue the Church?
Marty: Technically we wouldn’t sue the Church, we’d file a motion to lift the seal on the documents.
Ben: The Church will read that as us suing them. So will everybody else.
Marty: Good to know.
…
Marty: I’d like to challenge the protective order in the Geoghan case.
Publisher: You want to sue the Catholic Church?
Marty: We’re just filing the motion, but… Yes.
Publisher: You think it’s that important?
Marty: Yes, I do.
Publisher: Because obviously the Church will fight us very hard on this. Which won’t go unnoticed by our subscriber base, 53% of them are catholic.
Marty: I think they’ll be interested.
…
Robby: You are familiar with the Geoghan case?
Eric: Sure, 80 plaintiffs. All of them individual cases, Garabedian must be swimming.
Robby: Yeah, any allegation against Cardinal Law?
Eric: Yeah, it’s tricky. This is what you need to understand, these are shitty cases. Statute of limitation is only 3 years, and most of these victims don’t come forward till long after that.
Sacha: Why is that?
Eric: Well they’re kids, you know? Guilt, shame…And most of these kids come from tough neighbourhood, nobody wants to admit this kind of thing, so, uh, you’re screwed on the time moment, and even if you argue your way around that, the charitable immunity statute caps damages at 20 grand.
Sacha: 20 grand, for molesting a child?
Eric: That is the way the system is set up, yes. The Church is tough, so your best shot is to try this cases in the press.
…
Mitchell: The Church thinks in centuries, Mr. Rezendes. Do you think your paper has resources to take that on?
Mike: Yeah, I do. But if you don’t mind me asking…do you?
…
Mike: So why are you here today?
Robby: Going over this clips of Saviano.
Mike: Yeah, Ben and Steve thinks it’s a dead end. They gave me a bunch of crap about it at the game.
Robby: Yeah, Ben emailed me.
Mike: He did?
Robby: Yeah…he said we should let it go.
Mike: What do you wanna do?
Robby: We bring Saviano in.
Mike: So, just ignore those guys?
Robby: I think we got to start ignoring everybody on this one.
Mike: I’m good at that.
…
Cardinal Law: If I can be of any help, Marty, don’t hesitate to ask. I find that the city flourishes when its great institutions work together.
Marty: Thank you. Personally I’m of the opinion that for a paper to best perform its function, it really needs to stand alone.
…
Cardinal Law [handing Marty a wrapped package]: Little gift, Marty. Think of it as a Cardinals guide to the city of Boston.[/b]
Marty unwraps it in the car. It’s a book: CATHOLIC CHURCH CATECHISM. Marty is Jewish.
[b]Phil: First of all, let me say thank you for having me in today. And I want you to know that you’ll have the full cooperation of my organization, SNAP.
Mike: How many members are in your organization Phil?
Phil: We had 11, at our last chapter meeting…no, 10, Karen just moved.
Sacha: You had a woman in your group?
Phil: Of course there was a woman, they don’t discriminate, not when it comes to abuse. And this has nothing to do with being gay. What this is, is priests using the collar to rape kids. Kids, boys and girls.
…
Phil: I was eleven. And I was preyed upon by father David Holly in Wester. And I don’t mean prayed for, I mean preyed upon.
…
Phil [to the Spotlight reporters]: Ok, well let me tell you…when you are poor kid from a poor family, religion counts for a lot. And when a priest pays attention to you, it’s a big deal. He ask you to collect a hymnals, or take out a trash, you feel special. It’s like God asking for help. Maybe it’s a little weird when he tells you a dirty joke but now you got a secret together. So you go along. Then he shows you a porno mag. And then you go along, and you go along, and you go along. Until one day he asks you to jerk him off or give him a blowjob. And so you go along with that too. Because you feel trapped, because he has groomed you. How do you say no to a God, right?
…
Phil [to the Spotlight reporters]: You guys gotta understand. This is big. This is not just Boston, this is a whole country, it’s a whole world. And it goes right up to the Vatican.
Mike: Do you have any proof ot that, Phil?
Phil: No, not yet. But think about it, there are so many of them. How else could they have hidden it sor so long?
Mike: So many what?
Phil: Priests! Priests! I know 13 right here in Boston.
Robby: You know 13 priest in Boston who have molested children?
Phil: Yeah, why do you keep repeating everything I say?
Robby: I just like to clarify things.
Phil: Maybe you should’ve clarified it 5 years ago… when I sent you all of this stuff, it’s all right here!!!
…
Mitchell [to Mike, regarding Patrick]: He’s one of the lucky ones. He’s still alive.
…
Richard [on the phone]: Look Mike, the Church wants us to believe that it’s just a few bad apples. It’s much bigger problem than that.
Mike: How much bigger, Richard?
Richard: Well, based on the research I would classify it as a recognizable psychiatric phenomenon.
…
Mike: Sipes said the all targets the same kind of kid. Low income families, absentee fathers broken homes. A guy like Geoghan goes after boys not because he prefers them but because they are more ashamed, less likely to talk. And these guys are predators, Robby. I talked to Sipe. Said he’s seen dozens of them in '60 in Seton. He called it a “phenomenon”.
…
Eric: Look, I told you guys, these are tough cases. Most of these folks, theyjust want some acknowledgement of what happened. We got them a sit down with the Bishop and a little dough, and that’s the best they can hope for.
Robby: Well, certainly, the best that priest could hope for.
Eric: No, the Church promises to take the priest out of circulation.
Robby: And did you follow up on that?
…
Ben: So this was all under the table.
Sacha: There’s no paper trail, at all. The victim has to sign the confidentiality agreement to get the settlement. The lawyer takes the third and the Church sweeps it under the rug.
Mike: Jesus, it’s a freaking racket.
Ben: It’s more complicated than that. Macleish has got the duty to client to get the best deal he can.
Sacha: Sure, but how many victims do you represent and profit from, before you say someting?
Mike: Garabedian would say none. And that’s why he’s taking these cases to Court. Because he wants people to know about this.
…
Robby: The Cardinal is in the corner, if you’re so inclined.
Marty: We’ve met.
Robby: Really? Did he mentioned the suit?
Marty: No, but he did give me a copy of cathecism.
Robby: Yeah, well, the Cardinal is not known for his subtlety. During the Porter investigation, he literally called down the power of God on the Globe.
Marty: How’d that play out?
Mike: Well, a week later, our editor broke his leg skiing.
…
Mitchell: Your new editor, he’s a Jew, right?
Mike: That’s right, yeah.
Mitchell: Well, see he comes in and suddenly everybody is interested in the Catholic Church. You know why?
Mike: No.
Mitchell: Because it takes the outsider. Like me. I’m Armenian. How many Armenians
do you know in Boston?
Mike: Steve Kurkjian, works at The Globe.
Mitchell. That’s two.
…
Mitchell [to Mike]: This city, these people…making the rest of us feel like we don’t belong. But they’re no better than us. Look at how they treat their children. Mark my words, Mr. Rezendes. If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a village to abuse one.
…
Robby: Listen, Jimmy. You want to be on the right side of this.
Jim: This is the Church, you’re talking about Robby. Look around, these are good people, done a lot of good for this city. Enjoy the party.
…
Matt: I’ve been through a lot these now. “Sick leave” isn’t the only designation they use when they take one of these priests out of the circulation. They use slew of terms. Absent on leave…On assignment…Emergency response.
Mike: They have a word for everything, these guys.
Sacha: Except rape.
…
Richard Sipes [on the phone]: I think that if you really want to understand the crisis you need to start with the celibacy requirement. That was my first major finding. Only 50% of the clergy are celibat. Now, most of them are having sex with other adults. But the fact remains that this creates a culture of secrecy that tolerates and even protects pedophiles.
Sacha: So you believe the Church is aware of the extent of this crisis?
Richard: Well, absolutely. After the first major scandal in Louisiana Tom Doyle, the secretary candidacy for papal nuncio co-opted a report warning that pedophile priests, were billion dollar liability. That was in 1985.
Mike: Who saw that report, anyone from the catholic hierarchy?
Richard: Sure. Doyle tried to introduce the report at the National Conference of Catholic Bishops. In fact, Cardinal Law initially helped to fund the report. But then he backed out and he shelved it.
…
Mike: We think we have 13 priests… in Boston, that fits this pattern, which would be a very, very big story. Does that sound right to you? In terms of scale?
Richard [on the phone]: No, not really, Robby. Sounds low to me. My estimate suggests 6% act out sexually with minors.
Matt: 6%, of what?
Richard: 6% of all priests.
Mike: How many priest do we have in Boston?
Matt: About 1,500, 1% is 15, 6% is…90?
…
Ben: 90 fucking priests? In Boston?
Robby: That’s what he said.
Ben: If there were 90 of these bastards, people would know.
Mike: Maybe they do.
…
Robby [on the phone]: I need you to tell me something, Jim. Could it be 90 priests?
Jim: What?
Robby: Could it be as high as 90?
Jim: Jesus, Robby!
Robby: I need to know, Jim. I wouldn’t be asking if it wasn’t important.
Jim: You gotta stop this, Robby.
[Jim hangs up]
…
Robby: We have reasons to believe that there are allegations against as many as 87 priests in Boston.
Eric: I can’t talk to you about that.
Robby: Does that number sound right to you?
Eric: You gotta be kidding me, I just told you I don’t have time for this crap.
Robby: Eric, how many priests did you sign?
Eric: Robby, you know I can’t tell you that.
Robby: You’re going to give me their names and the names of their victims.
Eric: Are you threatening me?
Robby: We got two stories here: a story about degenerate clergy, and a story about a bunch of lawyers turning child abuse into a cottage industry. Which story do you want us to write? Because we’re writing one of them.
Eric: I already sent you a list of names.
Robby: What are you talking about? To whom?
Eric: The Globe, years ago. After the Porter case I got plenty of calls. I had 20 priests in Boston alone But I couldn’t go after them without the press. So I sent you guys a list of names and you buried it.
…
Marty: We need to focus on the institution, not the individual priests. Practice and policy; show me the church manipulated the system so that these guys wouldn’t have to face charges, show me they put those same priests back into parishes time and time again. Show me this was systemic, that it came from the top, down.
Ben: Sounds like we’re going after Law.
Marty: We’re going after the system.
…
Mike: And so I could just walk in to that courthouse right now and get those documents?
Mitchell: No, you can not. Because the documents are not there.
Mike: But you just said they’re public.
Mitchell: I know I did. But this is Boston. And the Church does not want them to be found, so, they are not there.
Mike: Mitch, are you telling me that the Catholic Church removed legal documents from that courthouse?
Mitchell: Look, I’m not crazy, I’m not paranoid. I’m experienced. Check the docket. You’ll see. They control everything. Everything.[/b]
Up next: 9/11.
[b]Matt: This is nuts. Two days ago I told my wife we gotta be working on biggest story on the planet.
…
Phil: Look, I get it. No one wants to read about kids getting raped by priests. Especially now, but you asked a lot of people to relive some very painful experiences…
Sacha: Phil you know why we were taking off of this story…
Phil: It’s been six weeks since 9/11.
Sacha: I realize that, and we’re gonna get back to it.
Phil: When?! You’re doing the same thing you guys did the last time.
Sacha: No.
Phil: You’re dropping us.
…
Judge: These exhibits you’re after Mr. Rezendes…They’re very sensitive records.
Mike: With all due respect Your Honor, that’s not the question. The records are public.
Judge; Maybe so, but tell me…where is the editorial responsibility in publishing records
of this nature?
Mike: Well, where is the editorial responsibility in not publishing them?
…
Mike: We got Law. This is it.
Robby: No, this is Law covering for one priest, there’s another ninety out there.
Mike: Yeah, and we’ll print that story when we get it, but we got to go with this now.
Robby: No, I’m not going to rush this story, Mike.
Mike: We don’t have a choice, Robby. If we don’t rush to print, somebody else is going to find these letters and butcher this story. Joe Quimby from the Herald was at the freaking courthouse!
Robby: Mike…
Mike: What? Why are we hesitating? Baron told us to get Law. This is Law.
Robby: Baron told us to get the system. We need the full scope. That’s the only thing that will put an end to this.
Mike: Then let’s take it up to Ben and let him decide.
Robby: We’ll take it to Ben when I say it’s time.
Mike: It’s time, Robby! It’s time! They knew and they let it happen! To kids! Okay? It could have been you, it could have been me, it could have been any of us. We gotta nail these scumbags! We gotta show people that nobody can get away with this; Not a priest, or a cardinal or a freaking pope!
…
Robby: I’m out of time, Jim. We got cover-up stories on 70 priests. But the boss is not gonna run it unless I got confirmation from your side.
Jim: Are you out of your mind?
Robby: C’mon. This is our town, Jimmy. Everybody knew something was going on. And no one did a thing. We got to put an end to it.
Jim: Don’t tell me Don’t tell me what I got to do. Yeah, I helped defend these scumbags, but that’s my job, Robby. I was doing my job!
Robby: Yeah, you and everyone else.
…
Marty: Robby, that source of yours, is it something we could revisit?
Robby: It might be tough.
Ben: But he has no problem helping… the Church protect dozens of dirty priests. Guy is a scumbag.
Matt: He’s a lawyer, he’s doing his job.
Mike: He’s a shill for the Church.
Ben: He knew and he did nothing.
Mike: He could have said something years ago. Maybe save some lives.
Robby: What about us?
Ben: What’s that supposed to mean?
Robby: We had all the pieces. Why didn’t we get it sooner?
Ben: We didn’t have all the pieces.
Robby: We had Saviano, we had Barrett, we had Geoghan. We had the directories in the basement.
Ben: You know what, we got it now.
Mike: Robby, this story needed Spotlight.
Robby: Mike, Spotlight’s been around since 1970.
Ben: So what? We couldn’t see the scope of this. No one could. Robby, this started with one goddamn priest.
Robby: Macleish sent us a letter of 20 priests years ago. Sacha found a clip.
Mike: Are you freaking kidding, 20 priests? When?
Sacha: Just after Porter, December '93.
Robby: We buried the story in Metro. No folo.
Ben: That was you. You were Metro.
Robby: Yeah. That was me.
…
Marty [to the Spotlight reporters]: Can I say something here? Sometimes it’s easy to forget that we spend most of our time stumbling around the dark. Suddenly, a light gets turned on and there’s a fair share of blame to go around. I can’t speak to what happened before I arrived, but all of you have done some very good reporting here. Reporting that I believe is going to have an immediate and considerable impact on our readers. For me, this kind of story is why we do this.
…
Title card: Over the course of 2002, the Spotlight team published close to 600 stories on the scandal. 249 priests and brothers were publicly accused of sexual abuse within the Boston Archdiocese. The number of survivors in Boston is estimated to be well over 1,000. In December 2002, Cardinal Law resigned from the Boston Archdiocese. He was reassigned to the Basilica di Sata Maria in Rome, one of the highest ranking Roman Catholic cvhurches in the world. Major abuse scandals have been uncovered in the following places…[/b]
Over 200 cities around the globe are noted.