I have a relatively rudimentary rubric:
The three to five best entries in every genre will endure. And for the purposes of this answer, best and popular are synonymous.
And ideally, for a film to weather the pillages of time, it’s going to have to be carrying both critical and cultural currency i.e., it has to be both ‘best’ and ‘popular.’
By ‘modern,’ I’m assuming we are considering films released since 2010.
If we look at ‘Action,’ the likes of Fury Road, Raid and Fallout and a couple of others at least are likely to stand the test of time.
Similarly, in the realm of ‘Sci-Fi,’ Arrival, Interstellar and Inception will soldier on, as their burgeoning standings indicate.
And so forth. Those are some straightforward picks. But while contemplating on the answer, a peculiar thought occurred to me.
The Academy Award for Best Picture is meant to be a bastion of excellence; winners are seemingly certified with longevity and abiding relevance. But in practice, the inverse is often true.
Several winners are lost to time whereas certain plucky nominees endure.
But of course, it doesn’t always shake out that way. There are a few chosen ones.
I believe Spotlight (2015) is one of them.
Every generation has its outstanding journalism movie. The 70s alone had enough to last multiple generations.
You begin with the Holy Grail – All The President’s Men. Then, there’s Network. Both in the same year, 1976. What a time to be alive.
And move through time a bit and you’ll come across The Killing Fields (1984), Broadcast News (1987), The Insider (1999) and Zodiac (2007). All veritable classics in my eyes.
Spotlight belongs up on that pantheon. In fact, I’d go as far as to say that it is worthy of a seat at the podium, flanked on either side by All The President’s Men and Network.
It does such a nuanced job of dealing with a delicate subject. It doesn’t sensationalise; it is dignified. It is a film made with one purpose above all – to tell the story.
There are no histrionics, no grand speeches and proclamations. The story is the main event; it’s the only event.
Spotlight shares in that quality with All The President’s Men.
Those films needn’t crowbar bombastic scenes into the narrative because the subject they deal with carries more weight than any over-the-top dramatic sequence ever could.
Tom McCarthy, the director, put together a precise yet thoroughly compelling film about investigative journalism at its finest.
He was abetted by an ensemble that is worthy of the highest praise.
It is due to the authenticity and grace that permeates Spotlight that when the only ‘loud’ scene in the movie does arrive, courtesy of Mark Ruffalo’s character, it is akin to being flattened by a metric ton of bricks.
Mike Rezendes: Then let’s take it up to Ben and let him decide.
Walter ‘Robby’ Robinson: We’ll take it to Ben when I say it’s time.
Mike Rezendes: It’s time, Robby! It’s time! They knew and they let it happen! To KIDS! Okay?
It could have been you, it could have been me, it could have been any of us.
We gotta nail these scumbags! We gotta show people that nobody can get away with this; Not a priest, or a cardinal, or a freaking pope!
Spotlight is as worthy an Oscar winner as any last decade. And it will endure. It will endure because of its authenticity, restraint and dignity.
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