tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9962318.post9150766854913364051..comments2024-01-19T19:09:23.701-08:00Comments on UpWord: FILM: DoubtTom Chatthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14570407221616215818noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9962318.post-4132968548185433612009-01-14T14:28:00.000-08:002009-01-14T14:28:00.000-08:00I have not seen the stage play, but I agree about ...I have not seen the stage play, but I agree about the movie's ending. I did not take the "doubt" Sister Aloysius feels at the end to be about Father Flynn's guilt at all; she makes that clear when she says that his confession was his resignation. She remains absolutely certain -- even if he didn't actually cross the line physically -- that he takes liberties in his own thoughts and in respecting adult/child boundaries (especially when a child might be disposed to welcome it) and so is potentially untrustworthy. Her ultimate doubt is much bigger than this: it is about (a) her commitment to an institution that would allow potential opportunism of this nature to not only go uninvestigated, but in fact be rewarded with promotion within its hierarchy; or (b) taking it one step further, whether there is a god at all. In short, she is questioning the entire system of organized religion at the very least, and perhaps even the existence of a god who would be the "head" of a system so vulnerable to abuse. It seemed immediately obvious to me that the entire goal of the story was to bring that question to light. Her doubt is just the logical conclusion of a thinking mind whose foundation of religious faith has been rocked by a cataclysmic realization. I find it interesting that so many people I know did not view her doubt this way, but instead believe it to be about Father Flynn's guilt; I can't see how the movie leaves any "doubt" on this point at all.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com