Philomena [DVD]

The main point of this film is to shed light on the negative actions of the Catholic Church during the period between 1958 and the early 1970s. During this time, nuns from various institutions were allowed to take babies away from unwed mothers and sell them, often to practicing Catholics, mostly Americans. Judi Dench portrays a woman who spends 50 years searching for her child, facing rejection from the Catholic Church along the way. This portrayal is truly horrifying. Dench delivers an exceptional performance as always, while Steve Coogan falls short and seems out of his depth. It's disheartening to think that such terrible practices were allowed just a few decades ago. However, Dench's strong lead performance earns this film a solid four-star rating.