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In Theatres: Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Boston Globe star in 'Spotlight'

The 2003 story of the investigative reporting team that uncovered thousands of sexual abuse cases by the Catholic church in Boston
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Rachel McAdams stars as a Boston Globe reporter in the new film 'Spotlight'


You're probably at home, re-watching Aziz Ansari's Master of None for the third or fourth time. But if you make it out to a theater this weekend, there are a few new releases of interest – even though, yes, you're probably only buying tickets for James Bond.

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Spotlight, starring Michael Keaton and Rachel McAdams, tells the story of the team of investigative reporters at the Boston Globe, who together work to unearth and break stories of child sexual abuse at the hands of the Catholic church. The work in the film takes place over a year, with the journalists' investigation focusing on Massachusetts, but the resulting revelations would spark a series of similar dominoes around the world, and the international Catholic sex abuse scandal of the mid-2000s.

The Spotlight team's work won them the 2003 Pulitzer Prize.

"At a moment when print journalism finds itself dangerously close to extinction, Spotlight is a film that reminds its viewers of what a valuable and vital enterprise it can be," writes Zack Ruskin, for the website Consequence of Sound.

In his review, Ruskin also lauds the performances by McAdams, Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, Brian d'Arcy James, and the rest of the cast: "The backbone of Spotlight is its impeccable cast. In a film dense with still-action conversations, it's the chops of talents like John Slattery, Liev Schreiber, and Billy Crudup in supporting roles that carry the story through."

The film has been widely critically acclaimed so far, with a 97 per cent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the highest of practically every film still in theatres – along with films like Sicario, The Martian, The End of the Tour, and Bridge of Spies.

Also new this weekend:

Love the Coopers, a festive film that pulls from the same wires of its unlimited December 25th-themed predecessors – a stacked ensemble cast, a disjointed family returning home for the holidays, Diane Keaton, a few wacky events, and the rediscovery of what Christmas is all about.

The 33 'digs up' the stories of the men trapped underground during the Chilean mine explosion and collapse in 2010. Starring Antonio Banders, Juliette Binoche, Rodrigo Santoro, Martin Sheen, and Cote de Pablo.