Director
John Patrick Shanley
Leading Actors/Actresses
Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman
Supporting Actors/Actresses
Amy Adams, Viola Davis
Genre
Drama
Language
English
Awards
Nominated for 5 Academy Awards: Best Writing-Adapted Screenplay, Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role, Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role (2 Nominations), Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
Date of Release
2008
Producer
Mark Roybal, Scott Rudin
Setting and Context
A Catholic parish school in The Bronx, New York in 1964
Narrator and Point of View
There is no narrator nor a particular point of view throughout the film. The story is told from the third-person perspective, and the audience is given the autonomy to evaluate the problems presented and extrapolate a conclusion.
Tone and Mood
The tone of the film is candid, while the mood is ominous and dramatic.
Protagonist and Antagonist
There is no clear protagonist nor antagonist of the film; this ambiguity is indeed the film's main theme.
Major Conflict
Sister Aloysius believes that Father Flynn has committed abuse against the parish school's first black student, Donald Miller. She spends the next few months attempting to prove the allegations and pressuring the priest to resign.
Climax
The climax of the story is when Sister Aloysius calls Father Flynn into her office in order to tell him that she has spoken with a nun at his previous parish and has found that he is a serial offender.
Foreshadowing
Father Flynn's opening sermon on the topic of doubt foreshadows how uncertainty drives the story's events.
Understatement
An example of understatement is when Father Flynn asks Sister Aloysius where her compassion is and the nun replies, "Nowhere you can get at it."
Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques
Allusions
When Father Flynn encounters the stained glass window with the detail of the eye of God, the imagery alludes to God's omniscience.
Paradox
Sister Aloysius claims that she is certain that Father Flynn has committed a crime against a student. However, she is continually confronted with her lack of evidence and lack of proof of her uncertainty.
Parallelism
The light bulb that blows out in Sister Aloysius's office parallels the nun's doomed quest to uncover evidence surrounding the allegations brought against Father Flynn.
