Household Saints

"Household Saints" is one of the best movies that I have seen. With an all-star cast including Tracy Ulman, Vincent D'Onofrio, and Lili Taylor. The only odd thing about this movie is that D'Onofrio plays Taylor's father in this movie. Four years earlier he played her fiancee in "Mystic Pizza" it just seemed odd at first, but then the performances overshadow the odd-casting choice. I seemed to be engrossed by the plot and the performances which were brilliant! Great movie!

Not just another movie about Italian-Americans, "Household Saints" portrays three generations in a family, culminating in the granddaughter (Lili Taylor) getting obsessed with Jesus to the extremest extent. That seems a little antithetical - to me, at least - as I usually expect the older generations to be more religious than the younger generations to reject it. But don't get me wrong; I recommend this movie, at the very least as a look at the vicissitudes of family life. Nancy Savoca has shown that she does a great job when casting Lili Taylor, with this one and "Dogfight". Also starring Tracey Ullman, Vincent D'Onofrio and Michael Imperioli (of "The Sopranos").

This complex and exceptionally intelligent film about two - or even three - generations of Italian-American women, makes you laugh, makes you cry. Splendid play by Lili Taylor, and Tracey Ullman is great as well. The main theme of the film is the relation of these women to love, and to to their Catholic faith about which this film has much to say, doing so in a rather ironic, yet loving and understanding way. Precisely this mode of detached but understansing irony is general mood of the film: the burlesque and the sentimental is mixed and fused together into an expressive unity, free of contradiction and dissonance: a feat very very rarely achieved by any director. So, in short, and quite simply, this is one of the finest movies I have ever seen.

I was so impressed by this film when I saw it at the Festival of Festivals (now the Toronto International Film Festival) in 1993 that I went home without seeing anything else. I would recommend it to any spiritual person. The film's saint is Saint Therese of Lisieux, who once said "What matters in life is not great deeds, but great love." After her death, she promised to "let fall a shower of roses," which is pivotal in the film. I really recommend it. A wonderful work by an American director.

In the suburbs, an old Italian couple recalls the story of the miracle sausages in the old neighborhood to the younger generations. Butcher Joseph Santangelo (Vincent D'Onofrio) wins Catherine Falconetti (Tracey Ullman) in a game of pinochle. They would have God-obsessed daughter Teresa (Lili Taylor).

I love the old world superstitions and the magical realism. The movie is split in two with the arrival of Lili Taylor. It's an interesting turn for the religious idealism of these characters. I would like more music especially popular music to place the story in the various eras. They probably didn't have the money. Overall, I love the world of this movie.