Spotlight (2015) quotes

Director
Tom McCarthy.

Cast
Mark Ruffalo.
Michael Keaton.
Rachel McAdams.

The true story of how the Boston Globe uncovered the massive scandal of child molestation and cover-up within the local Catholic Archdiocese, shaking the entire Catholic Church to its core.

If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a village to abuse one.
– Mitchell Garabedian

I was doing my job.
– Jim Sullivan
Yeah, you and everyone else.
– Walter ‘Robby’ Robinson

They say it’s just physical abuse but it’s more than that, this was spiritual abuse. You know why I went along with everything? Because priests, are supposed to be the good guys.
– Peter Canellos

We’ve got two stories here: a story about degenerate clergy, and a story about a bunch of lawyers turning child abuse into a cottage industry. Which story do you want us to write? Because we’re writing one of them.
– Walter ‘Robby’ Robinson

Mitch, are you telling me that the Catholic Church removed legal documents from that courthouse?
– Mike Rezendes
Look, I’m not crazy, I’m not paranoid. I’m experienced. Check the docket. You’ll see. They control everything.
– Mitchell Garabedian

Six percent is 90.
– Mike Rezendes
90 priests?
– Walter ‘Robby’ Robinson
If there were 90 of these bastards, people would know.
– Ben Bradlee Jr.
Maybe they do.
– Mike Rezendes

We don’t have a choice, Robby. If we don’t rush to print, somebody else is going to find these letters and butcher this story. Joe Quimby from the Herald was at the freaking courthouse!
– Mike Rezendes

This city, these people… making the rest of us feel like we don’t belong. But they’re no better than us. Look at how they treat their children. Mark my words, Mr. Rezendes. If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a village to abuse one.
– Mitchell Garabedian

We got Law. This is it.
– Mike Rezendes
No, this is Law covering for one priest, there’s another ninety out there.
– Walter ‘Robby’ Robinson
Yeah, and we’ll print that story when we get it, but we got to go with this now.
– Mike Rezendes
No, I’m not going to rush this story, Mike.
– Walter ‘Robby’ Robinson

Mike.
– Walter ‘Robby’ Robinson
What? Why are we hesitating? Baron told us to get Law. This is Law.
– Mike Rezendes
Baron told us to get the system. We need the full scope. That’s the only thing that will put an end to this.
– Walter ‘Robby’ Robinson
Then let’s take it up to Ben and let him decide.
– Mike Rezendes
We’ll take it to Ben when I say it’s time.
– Walter ‘Robby’ Robinson
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!
– Mike Rezendes

Sometimes it’s easy to forget that we spend most of our time stumbling around the dark. Suddenly, a light gets turned on and there’s a fair share of blame to go around. I can’t speak to what happened before I arrived, but all of you have done some very good reporting here. Reporting that I believe is going to have an immediate and considerable impact on our readers. For me, this kind of story is why we do this.
– Marty Baron

I was eleven. And I was preyed upon by father David Holly in Wester. And I don’t mean prayed for, I mean preyed upon.
– Phil Saviano

If I can be of any help, Marty, don’t hesitate to ask. I find that the city flourishes when its great institutions work together.
– Cardinal Law
Thank you. Personally I’m of the opinion that for a paper to best perform its function, it really needs to stand alone.
– Marty Baron

We need to focus on the institution, not the individual priests. Practice and policy; show me the church manipulated the system so that these guys wouldn’t have to face charges, show me they put those same priests back into parishes time and time again. Show me this was systemic, that it came from the top, down.
– Marty Baron
Sounds like we’re going after Law.
– Ben Bradlee Jr.
We’re going after the system.
– Marty Baron