It's 1964, St. Nicholas in the Bronx. A vibrant, charismatic priest, Father Flynn
(Philip Seymour Hoffman) is trying to upend the schools' strict customs, which have long been fiercely guarded by Sister Aloysius Beauvier (Meryl Streep), the iron-gloved Principal who believes in the power of fear and discipline. The winds of political change are sweeping through the community, and indeed, the school has just accepted its first black student, Donald Miller.
But when Sister James (Amy Adams), a hopeful innocent, shares with Sister Aloysius her guilt-inducing suspicion that Father Flynn is paying too much personal attention to Donald, Sister Aloysius sets off on a personal crusade to unearth the truth and to expunge Flynn from the school. Now, without a shard of proof besides her moral certainty, Sister Aloysius locks into a battle of wills with Father Flynn which threatens to tear apart the community with irrevocable consequence.
I enjoyed the movie and the acting was great. Unfortunately, the movie left me feeling frustrated and doubtful by raising questions but not answering them.
Streep and Hoffman were superb in their portrayals of their characters. A very well-casted movie that constantly tackeled issues of not only the unquestioned devotion of religious faith but also the challenging of it right up to the conclusion of the film. An excellent film. Highly recommended.
Well written, great performances.