Ordre & châtiment, le péché de nos pères

Our Fathers is a terrific movie made by Showtime depicting the Boston scandal involving pedophile priests and their effects on the children they abused so many years ago.

With an outstanding cast, the film brilliantly shows the impact on the lives of those abused and focuses on the church, in not the best of terms.

An all-star cast is headed by Ted Danson portraying the lawyer for the abused. Christopher Plummer, as Cardinal Bernard Law, and Brian Dennehy, as an accused priest-abuser turn in masterful Emmy nominated performances in supporting roles. They are just terrific but will probably cancel one another out on the Aug. 27th awards show.

Ellen Burstyn, who is at her best when she is miserable, appears in one scene as the mother of several of the victims.

The film goes all out in showing the culpability of higher ups in a major cover-up of the priest-abuse scandal. We probably haven't seen such an cover-up since Watergate.

Danson appears in the opening scene and acts as he did but in a non-comical way as TV's Becker.

The language is salty and surprising given the nature of the Catholic church. Four letter words are prevalent and unfortunately appropriate as the story goes on.

Plummer is just fabulous as Law, a guilt-ridden priest who is ready to sacrifice anyone to save his own neck. Equally good is Dennehy, who seems to be able to beat an abuse charge until his homosexuality is revealed.

Sin was never better than this.

Much credit should go to David France and Thomas Michael Donnelly for the book and screenplay for "Our Fathers." The delicate subject matter of pedophilia in the Catholic church and the years of cover-up of the abuses in the hierarchy of the Boston diocese were handled with great sensitivity.

Every note of the film rang true, which was due in large part to the stellar cast. Christopher Plummer as Cardinal Law and Brian Dennehy as Father Spagnolia were both standouts. But the smaller roles were noteworthy as well, especially the adult men who were the abuse victims. The long-term effects of the abuse were vividly conveyed by those actors, who played their roles with great feeling and conviction. Ted Danson was very effective as an attorney motivated by the pursuit of justice, as opposed to greed. Even the actor who was faced with the daunting task of playing the late Pope John Paul II was highly credible. This brilliant ensemble was led skillfully under the sensitive direction of Dan Curtis.

This could have been a run-of-the-mill, lurid made-for-television film. Instead, it was an enterprise created with integrity by all of the artists involved.

If only I could write a spoiler. That would imply that the final outcome of this the greatest of all scandals to rock the Catholic Church was known. But it is not, and the filmmakers do not pretend they know. They simply present in an honest, unflinching manner, the struggles of one group of victims in one city as they emerge from their own dark closets to seek justice for the pedophilia inflicted upon them by the men they most deeply trusted, their priests. This was a venture that took great courage. These were blue collar workers who had to first buck the macho culture in which they lived to do what they believed was the right thing to do. That was not easy. They received more mockery than plaudits as they sought understanding and healing. Cardinal Bernard Law is presented in a more compassionate light than I thought he deserved. He after all could have ended it all many years ago had he acted decisively in ferreting out and removing evil men like Geoghan and Shanley. Instead, he moved them around from parish to parish, enabling them to continue their perversions on new and unsuspecting victims. The Cardinal and his lawyers were so powerful in their hierarchical world and held the media so completely under their spell, that initially a disbelieving Boston Globe reporter suggests a spin that the bishop could use to modulate his responsibility into a more acceptable justification. She was anxious to set aside honest reporting for the more important act of helping the Cardinal. I saw superb acting, brilliant direction and hard hitting dialogue, but no vengeful lashing out. This was a fair and balanced presentation, with the viewer left to ponder and decide. The film ripped a hole through the surface of this horror exposing the incredible cover-up for all to see, but still maintained its balance. It is left to others to more fully plumb the depths of this scandal. This is a must see film for all, Catholics and non-Catholics alike, as pedophilia is not the exclusive domain of the Catholic Church.

I have seen this movie and am a practicing Catholic from Boston who worked in a rectory at age 12 in 1964 and did not hear of any abuse. I think the movie did a great job. I lived through the scandal. Before this happen I always said Cardinal Law had to be a cardinal because he could not get that ego in regular size church. You cant believe what this scandal has down to our diocese. And we cant blame lawyers or the media the only real culprit are the pedophile priests and those the covered it up. A a practicing Catholic I have always been aware of the secrecy in the everyday Church. When a Priests in our parish and left to get married have Mental disorders (nerves, drinking ) or left to get married it was if the just never existed. And why would anyone blame Jews for this movie. It looks like the writers , director and stars are not Jew's if that make a difference. Father Spag is in the parish next to ours and the movie did an accurate account of him. Except he is medium built Italian.

It was 40 years ago when I first became disillusioned with my church. Even then I did not abandon it. I was fully involved - altar boy, seminarian, Knights of Columus - the works. It wasn't until later when the abuses by priests were disclosed, and I was doing sexual abuse investigations myself for Child Protective Services, that I finally got fed up. I sent my baptismal certificate to the military ordinate and asked to be formally excommunicated. They told me to request it in my local parish. What, from another sexually abusing priest? No, thank you. I consider myself excommunicated even if they won't give me a letter.

This film brought it all back. The only reason I do not rate it higher was the fact that there was enough information here for three films. Other than that, it was outstanding.

Ted Danson probably starred in the best role of his career, at least from my standpoint. He was great as the lawyer that took on the almighty church and brought it down. Unfortunately, the church was able to stall real reforms, and you can be sure that priests continue to abuse today.

Christopher Plummer, as Cardinal Law, was magnificent. You almost believed that he truly did not know what he was doing. Don't be fooled. He got a promotion out of the scandal he caused by hiding those pedophile priests. He is living the good life in Rome today.

Brian Dennehy was superb as Father Spags, a gay priest who spoke out against Cardinal Law and was banished because of it.

This film opened old wounds that I hoped were healed. They were opened when Cardinal Law presided at the funeral mass of Pope John II. Those who yell for Sainthood for this pope should know that he allowed Law to remain in Boston and gave him the cushy job in Rome after he was finally forced to resign. Rome knew and let it continue.

This moving was a great film that shows how absolute power corrupts.