Amazon.com It's always a risk when writers direct their own work, since some playwrights don't travel well from stage to screen. Aided by Roger Deakins, of No Country for Old Men fame, who vividly captures the look of a blustery Bronx winter, Moonstruck's John Patrick Shanley pulls it off. If Doubt makes for a dialogue-heavy experience, like The Crucible and 12 Angry Men, the words and ideas are never dull, and a consummate cast makes each one count. Set in 1964 and loosely inspired by actual events, Shanley focuses on St. Nicholas, a Catholic primary school that has accepted its first African-American student, Donald Miller (Joseph Foster), who serves as altar boy to the warm-hearted Father Flynn (Phillip Seymour Hoffman). Donald may not have any friends, but that doesn't worry his mother, Mrs. Miller (Viola Davis in a scene-stealing performance), since her sole concern is that her son gets a good education. When Sister James (Amy Adams) notices Flynn concentrating more of his attentions on Miller than the other boys, she mentions the matter to Sister Aloysius Beauvier (Meryl Streep), the school's hard-nosed principal. Looking for any excuse to push the progressive priest out of her tradition-minded institution, Sister Aloysius sets out to destroy him, and if that means ruining Donald's future in the process--so be it. Naturally, she's the least sympathetic combatant in this battle, but Streep invests her disciplinarian with wit and unexpected flashes of empathy. Of all the characters she's played, Sister Aloysius comes closest to caricature, but she never feels like a cartoon; just a sad woman willing to do anything to hold onto what little she has before the forces of change render her--and everything she represents--redundant. --Kathleen C. Fennessy Stills from Doubt (Click for larger image) Product Description From Miramax Films comes one of the most honored and acclaimed motion pictures of the year, Doubt. Based on the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning play, Doubt is a mesmerizing, suspense-filled drama with four riveting performances from Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams and Viola Davis that will have you pinned to the edge of your seat. Sister Aloysius Beauvier (Streep), the rigid and fear-inspiring principal of the Saint Nicholas Church School, suffers an extreme dislike for the progressive and popular parish priest Father Flynn (Hoffman). Looking for wrongdoing in every corner, Sister Aloysius believes she's uncovered the ultimate sin when she hears Father Flynn has taken a special interest in a troubled boy. But without proof, the only thing certain is doubt. "One of the best pictures of the year," (USA Today, Rolling Stone, New York Post, San Francisco Examiner, Roger Ebert). Bonus Features include From Stage To Screen, Scoring Doubt, The Sisters Of Charity Review Nominated for 5 Academy Awards, including Meryl Streep's record-setting 15th Oscar nomination (Best Performance by an Actress), Doubt continues to wow audiences and critics alike. 2009 Academy Awards Nominated Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role Philip Seymour Hoffman Nominated Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role Meryl Streep Nominated Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role Amy Adams Nominated Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role Viola Davis Nominated Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published John Patrick Shanley 2009 Art Directors Guild Nominated Excellence in Production Design Award Period Films David Gropman (production designer) 2009 BAFTA Awards Nominated BAFTA Film Award Best Leading Actress Meryl Streep Nominated Best Supporting Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman Nominated Best Supporting Actress Amy Adams 2009 Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards Winner Critics Choice Award Best Actress Meryl Streep Nominated Critics Choice Award Best Acting Ensemble Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Viola Davis Nominated BestASIN: B001PA0FFOVSKU: GGV.B001PA0FFO.GCondition: GoodBinding: DVD
