"Break the story. Break the silence."
Director: Tom McCarthy
Cast: Mark Ruffalo, Michael Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Liev Schreiber, John Slattery
Spotlight — Movie Quotes
Memorable Quotes
If it takes a village to raise a child, it also takes a village to abuse one.
Context
Spoken by the victims' attorney to Mike Rezendes, explaining why the scope of the problem is so vast.
Meaning
The central indictment of the film, suggesting that the abuse was only possible because of systemic, collective negligence.
They knew and they let it happen! To kids! The people who were supposed to protect them!
Context
Rezendes shouts this during a heated argument with Robby about when to publish the story.
Meaning
Expresses the moral outrage and the betrayal of trust that lies at the heart of the scandal.
We're gonna focus on the institution, not the individual. We're going after the system.
Context
Baron instructs the team to look for the pattern of reassignment rather than just focusing on one priest.
Meaning
Defines the investigative strategy of the film: to prove that the cover-up was an official policy, not just the result of 'bad' individuals.
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