Twist of Faith (2004)

Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

Fresh and Exciting

A different way of telling a story

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

I honestly think this documentary back in 2004 should be recognised because it tells a story of a fireman who was sexually abused by a priest from childhood and we even get an opportunity to see his family's side of his story. Honestly I got so upset when Tony told his eldest daughter about what happened to him and said that his abuser was five blocks down to him. I really had to look away from the screen because I was holding back tears myself and like he was so brave to this story to his daughter as well as alerting that there is unfortunately a sex offender in their area. At least he was planning to move when he was taking into custody and in court, but again, he might be in a another neighbourhood where he could abuse other children one last time. Its honestly scary that we are living in a world full of monsters, I know we have to think of the good but dammit, they are all around us.With his parents still believing in the catholic church, I was annoyed but understand that they still believe in God and like their son was abused by a priest. Like why cant they look on reality to this based on what happened to their son?Brilliant documentary 8/10!

This comment is both a review of the film and a response to the comment left by "braindog."The review aspect exists in the depth of the following argument. The issues raised by the film are painfully highlighted by braindog's comments.Dear "Braindog,"I went through a range of emotions as I read your comment on Twist of Faith. It began with anger, then disbelief, and finally pity. No, not pity for you. I don't know you at all. I feel pity for the endless line of children who are being sexually abused or will be in the years to come. A war on child sex abuse is like the war on terror or drugs; complete victory isn't possible, but that doesn't mean we stop fighting. Comments like yours are sheltered, insensitive, and dangerous. I pity the children who will be harmed because of a mindset like yours. The pedophile's best weapons come from other people. The public's silence, ignorance, and fear speaking against the popular view let pedophiles hide and endure because people won't attack child sex abuse head-on.How old are you? How would you react if an authority figure, trusted, loved, friendly, advanced on you when you were 15? It's easier in today's instant-message, on-demand, Internet-savvy world to dismiss the filmmakers' stories. It is harmful to think that because teens "know" about sex that they are mature enough to make the right decisions or have the strength to make sense of an insane reality, even today when sex and teens are synonymous in pop culture.Do you know the filmmakers? Do you know their families, go to their churches, attend their schools? I did. The film showed you the new reports, the testimonials, the tears, and the arraignments. What more did you want from it? This is a documentary, not a work of fiction.When you're older and perhaps have a teen-aged child of your own, maybe you'll begin to understand how young they are, how impressionable and vulnerable they are. You comments sickened me. They are children, and they need to be protect. And they need to be believed.

As someone who was raised Catholic in Toledo, I found this very well-done, low-budget film to be incredibly compelling and real. While I personally never experienced abuse, many of my classmates and I had very strong relationships with the priests that worked in our parishes and schools. Watching on film the Archbishop (who was present at my Confirmation) so badly handle the revelation of the abuse was hard. But this film helped me understand the full ramifications of the abuse scandal. I liked that the film never allows itself to overly dramatize what is an incredibly painful and divisive situation. It simply shows the real impact of sexual abuse on a single man and his family. I just read another comment for this film, and it was less about the film and more about a particular viewer's political views on Church abuse. That anyone could watch this film and question the motivation of Comes is really difficult to imagine and sad. But of course -- as the film shows -- many people find it easier to further persecute victims of abuse than face the truth about the leaders of their faith.

I found this documentary to be well done, saddening, but also in the end inspirational. It seemed at least that this family committed to working things out even though things were difficult. I also found it to be a stinging indictment of the conduct of church officials, conduct unfortunately not limited to this particular circumstance. In my opinion, the Church as a body has not done nearly enough to express its sorrow and regret at the wholesale lack of action taken against known child abusers. I think that the RICO statutes should be used to prosecute many church leaders who took part in these cover-ups. The Church in Rome basically acts like none of this happened and still wants to hold itself out as some sort of moral authority. I don't buy it.