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Conspiracy Of Silence

2003, Movie, NR, 87 mins

Conspiracy Of Silence: Review

CONSPIRACY OF SILENCE
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Irish filmmaker John Deery's issue-of-the-week drama poses a provocative question: Why is the Catholic hierarchy so attached to the vow of celibacy, whose legacy includes some of the most divisive scandals ever to rock the church? But the limp thriller plot Deery constructs to frame his theological inquiries is both artificial and not very interesting, a lethal combination. Three years after disrupting a Vatican Council meeting with a placard that reads "The Church has AIDS," Irish priest Frank Sweeney (Patrick Casey) commits suicide. Shortly after, two students — Noel (Owen McDonnell) and Daniel McLaughlin (Jonathan Forbes) — are expelled from nearby St. Savior's seminary under suspicion of sexual impropriety. Both are top-notch students with strong callings to the priesthood, and the charges are false: Though Noel made advances to Daniel, they were rejected (in fact, one of the film's freshest aspects is the students' matter-of-fact acceptance of sexuality within the seminary). Progressive Father Dowling (Hugh Bonneville) argues that the church's hypocritical enforcement of its own rules shields priests who break their vows covertly while punishing those who dare to call for honest and open discussion of the issue. But Father Cahill (Sean McGinley) insists that both young men must go. Malicious gossip quickly spreads through Daniel's rural hometown, dismaying his pious mother (Brenda Fricker), while Daniel begins to wonder seriously, for the first time in his life, why a religious vocation excludes a life with Sinead (Catherine Walker), the ex-girlfriend he loves but left when he entered the seminary. Meanwhile, journalist David Foley (Jason Barry), languishing at the provincial "Galcranagh Gazette," suspects the suicide and the expulsions may be connected, and hopes that a provocative story involving the church could be his ticket to the big time. He uncovers the widespread but unacknowledged "don't ask, don't tell" policy, but also discovers the extent of the church's influence when he begins receiving anonymous threats against his family. Generally strong performances notwithstanding, this ploddingly earnest effort feels much longer than its 87-minute running time. First-time writer and director Deery credits his Catholic faith with compelling him to tackle this controversial issue. But the product of his soul-searching is alternately pedantic and cliched, from the clunky expositional dialogue to the climactic Perry Mason-style disclosure on a live broadcast hosted by real-life television personality Gay Byrne. In the end, the film's most shocking revelation may be that Irish tabloid TV is a remarkably civilized affair. leave a comment --Maitland McDonagh
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