This film is kind of off the wall as well as a satire about religion and the bible. It is about church goers who try to force religion down your throat. It makes fun of both sides the believers and non-believers. I think no matter which side you personally believe in you will find it to be funny and ridiculous at the same time. It was pretty entertaining and the cast were great in their roles. It was directed by Brian Dannelly who also co-wrote the film with Michael Urban.
They used the tagline “Heaven Help Us”
It would be considered a comedy with some dramatic moments in it as well. Jena Malone plays Mary as an obvious biblical reference, and the story centers around her for the most part at a Christian high school. Mandy Moore plays Hilary Faye who also attends the school and becomes her rival. Keep your eyes open as Macaulay Culkin is in this with a nice performance as Roland who is Hilary’s brother. He happens to be handicapped and fancies Eva Amurri the only Jewish girl at the school who plays Cassandra, she initially has nothing to do with him. Patrick Fugit plays “Patrick” and becomes the center of affection between the girls. Heather Matarazzo is Tia who is trying to fit in yet is opinionated as well. Chad Faust plays Dean who seemingly is the romantic interest of Mary. Elizabeth Thai plays Veronica and is an acquaintance of the girls.
Martin Donovan is Pastor Skip, who leads the studies at the school centre. Mary-Louise Parker also appears in this as Lillian. Kett Turton is Mitch, Julia Arkos is the PE Coach, Donna White is Trudy Mason, James Caldwell is the Hairdresser, and Nicki Clyne appears as the Guitar Player. The late Patrick Swayze appears in this as well as an over the top religious inspirational speaker.
Things change for Mary as she sees a vision of Jesus in a pool, from there the story gets pretty wild and whacky. I believe most people will find this to be at least mildly amusing and worth a look see.
This is a nice movie for a family to watch, especially if you enjoy fantasy films. The storyline goes like this: A mother and her two children move into a run-down older home – which is located near the forest. The children are not so happy with their new home, but try to adapt to their new surroundings. Soon enough, they discover they are not alone, but there are creatures living among them like faeries. These creatures can’t be seen by normal sight – until their new friend gives them the ability to start seeing what is really there.
The leading actor in this tale is young Freddie Highmore, who you might have seen in movies such as Finding Neverland (2004) alongside Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet. He also is the voice of Astro Boy the upcoming children’s film. His mother is played by actress Mary-Louise Parker, who fames from South Carolina. She is currently starring in the Showtime series “Weeds” and has an upcoming movie starring with Michael Douglas, Susan Sarandon and Danny DeVito called Solitary Man (2009).
There are more actors in this one like the talented Nick Nolte, who has starred in a number of films like: I’ll Do Anything (1994) and the 48 hours movies with Eddie Murphy. I must not forget to mention more talented cast in this one such as Andrew McCarthy, Joan Plowright, David Strathairn, Seth Rogen, and Martin Short. If those aren’t enough talented cast members, then the upcoming actress Sarah Bolger who plays the role of Mallory Jared / Simon’s older sister should impress you from this particular performance.
I recommend watching this movie; it was a real treat to see. The special effects were well done also. This movie was directed by Mark Waters, who directed movies like Mean Girls (2004) and the remake of Freaky Friday (2003).
