1992 religious comedy
Rating: 13/20
Plot: Pretending to be a faith healer and revival preacher, the oddly-named Jonas Nightengale winds up in a small farming community suffering from economic hardship, party because of a drought. Nightengale and his posse squeeze bloody cash from their turnips as he performs miracles and preaches the word of God. He connects with a crippled kid and his sister.
I almost really liked this movie, but it struggled to find a voice and I wasn’t sure it knew what it wanted to say. First, let me get Philip Seymour Hoffman out of the way since he’s the reason I watched this. He’s not in it much of all and does nothing at all that would make you remember the guy. He’s sort of playing the same guy from Twister but with a headband. Meat Loaf is also in this, but he and his man-boobs are also barely noticeable. I did enjoy his tie/shirt clash though. And there’s Liam Neeson trying to contain his accent as the sheriff of this nondescript American town. You will be ready to drop everything and listen when he utters, “I want to testify.” But this is all Steve Martin’s show, and he’s good although I’m not sure why anybody would look at him and think, “Yep, that’s a legitimate preacher man.” I loved how physical he made the role, gesticulating and dancing and hooting and hollering and even pulling off a half shirt. And oh, dig that sparkly jacket that turned Martin into a human disco ball! It’s a nice visual, as is the giant Jesus lurking behind him. I also enjoyed the choir although I was never sure where they came from or, if they were part of Nightengale’s entourage, how they were paid. The trio of revival scenes are lively. This is more dramatic than funny, but it really fails to connect emotionally and meanders a little too much with characters I had trouble getting interested in. I do like the questions it brings up although it seems thematically uneven. I kind of thought I’d like this better the second time I watched it, but that wasn’t really the case. Maybe I’m just angry because Marjoe Gortner didn’t star in the thing.
