Saw the movie "Doubt" last night. I was a bit disappointed.

[bif]

I thought the acting was so-so and the dialogue was not well written.

[PVnRT]

1. I was unimpressed as well

For a movie named "Doubt," there was very little "doubt" about what was going on.

[joeybee12]

2. Was Meryl as over-rated as usual?

I can't bear to see her onscreen, so I don't think I'll be watching it.

[bif]

3. Her acting is usually better.

Her character was weird and her dialogue was mediocre. Maybe she couldn't get into the role of a mean nun on a mission.

[joeybee12]

4. She probably didn't have an accent...

she usually does one...maybe that helps her because in Angels in America she was dreadful...no accent, same with Devil Wears Prada.

[Skittles]

6. yes she did have an accent

New Yawk and she did it very well - I thought she sounded exactly like my bf's mom who is from New York

[CBHagman]

9. I guess a Pulitzer-winning play is not up to your standards.

Maybe she couldn't get into the role of a mean nun on a mission.

Okay, now you've convinced me you didn't actually see Doubt.

[applegrove]

5. I thought the story was really good. How do you know something unless you lived it or witnessed it.

Then you know.

[nuxvomica]

7. I was actually pretty impressed with that movie

I thought Hoffmann turned in a decent performance for a change instead of his usual scenery-chewing and waterworks. And Streep was fine as usual.
I attended parochial schools and I thought they captured the atmosphere very well. The movie is really about a power struggle and it doesn't tie things up all that neatly in the end. The writing was quite good, IMHO.

[CBHagman]

8. I saw the original play before seeing the movie.

Sometimes I find there is a good deal more power in the stage version of a particular story than in the film adaptation, even if I happen to enjoy the film.

I happened to see a touring production starring Cherry Jones, who created the role of Sister Aloysius, played in the film by Meryl Streep. I admire both actresses but thought Jones brought an appealingly earthy toughness to the part.

Philip Seymour Hoffman is a great actor but I thought he was seriously miscast in the film version. It's the nature of the part as much as anything. Moreover, the great strength of the play is that you only learn what the characters choose to tell you; there is no opportunity to observe anything but conversations -- no scenes with students in the school, etc.

I do recommend that DUers see either the play or film, or both, and -- and this is important -- consider your own prejudices as you do. The whole point of Doubt is deciding what's true.

Oh, and there's a bravura part, a Mrs. Miller, who appears only briefly but is at the very center of the play and can take your breath away. Viola Davis plays the role in the film and richly deserved her Oscar nomination.