Adapted from the highly acclaimed play of the same name, Doubt is a drama powered by four Oscar-nominated performances and directed by John Patrick Shanley.

It’s 1964, the Bronx, a time of cultural upheaval. Father Flynn (Philip Seymour Hoffman) is a charismatic, cheerful, and progressive-minded priest who desires to move beyond the traditional ways of the Catholic church. Opposing him is Sister Aloysius (Meryl Streep), the strict and vindictive principal of the parish’s school who takes an immediate dislike for the free-wheeling new priest. When younger nun Sister James (Amy Adams) reports to her that Donald, the school’s only African-American boy (Joseph Foster II), came back shaken from a private meeting with Father Flynn (uh…). Sister Aloysius sets off on a quest to determine the truth and run Father Flynn out of town. But what happened exactly? Did anything even happen?

There is no real clear answer as to whether he did anything wrong. The movie lets the viewer make his/her own conclusion. Although the movie is rich in dialogues, Shanley did a great job of never overextending into never-ending talking. Doubt almost borders on a psychological thriller, it is that intense. The movie keeps the viewer on the edge of his seat, waiting for the slightest detail that might reveal him the truth.

The main driver of the plot is the confrontation of the titans. Father Flynn vs Sister Aloysius. Hoffman vs Streep. Those two match each other punch for punch and they deliver as expected. Meryl Streep gives a steely performance as the overbearing and uptight nun. She runs the school like a jail, expecting the utmost discipline from everyone around her. The arrival of Father Flynn rubbed her the wrong way from the get-go. He writes with a ballpoint pen, needs three lumps of sugar in his cup of tea, and doesn’t cut his nail. All of those major red flags in Sister Aloysius’ judgmental eyes. Philip Seymour Hoffman display his great acting chops, keeping the viewer guessing whether he really did anything wrong. He truly believes he did nothing wrong which make us, the viewers also believe he is innocent. There is also superb work from two great supporting actresses. Amy Adams plays her usual innocent, sweet and hopeful type of character but heck, she does it so well so I won’t complain for now. Sister James is hopelessly good-hearted and only wants to see the good in people and yet she is the one that provide the spark that sets off the powder keg. Viola Davis has only one scene as the mother of the potentially molested Donald, a dialogue with Meryl Streep’s character, but it is both an incredibly powerful and moving scene as well as a restrained performance. Very unique combination.

More of a good theater play put on film than a movie, Doubt features four incredible performances that no real movie aficionado would want to miss.

B+