Until now I’ve been hopelessly ignorant. Foxcatcher reveals a deep dark secret about America, and the secret is this: this country’s legacy is founded upon an unhealthy mix of greed, wealth and megalomania. It’s truly upsetting to hear now as a citizen of this country for over two decades that there may be something evil brewing beneath the sterilized narratives of American excellence and glory portrayed in mass media. How could I have been in the dark for so long…

Due equally in part to my own experience living in Boston for 6 years and to the much-discussed blandness of Tom McCarthy’s visual chops, I found myself watching the background a lot during Spotlight’s runtime, dwelling on the margins of what was in front of me not unlike the impatient reporters at the heart of its story. One of my findings was the film’s treatment of Harpoon IPA as the flagship beer of Boston. With the lone exception of a…