The Preacher's Wife

I saw this when it was in the theaters. I basically loved it mainly for its music and Jennifer Lewis' (Julia's mother) performance, but also I loved the opening and closing (climax) scenes. I'm basically a sucker for that kind of thing, and I understand how other people wouldn't find it interesting. I just saw the movie (The Bishop's Wife) which it was based on and finally feel qualified to comment. TPW was not just a remake of TBW, but more of a combination of TBW and "It's a Wonderful Life." Henry in TPW was the character of Jimmy Stewart in IWL, always caring for the underdog (altho very cynical to the angel's angelhood); Joe Hamilton in TPW was "Mr Potter" of the same, with his schemes to redevelop and control the town. I actually found it charming the way elements of TBW found themselves woven into TPW: the ice skating scene, the typewriter-turned-PC, the final sermon, to name a few. But I did realize that the message had been diluted into a feel-good comedy. There are no moments where one feels deeply moved merely by dialogue, such as TBW's Dudley's story of David and the Lion, which captivates the Bishop's entire household, down to the all-business secretary (not to mention the audience!). In TPW, we are made to be moved by the beautiful music; and as such, I guess we might as well just buy the soundtrack. TBW reminded me that special effects are only as good as the movie itself.

A very long time ago I happened on "The Bishop's Wife" and really liked it, but it wasn't a Christmas classic and I never saw it again. So when I realized there was a "re-make" I was excited. I liked this story even better! I thought Whitney Houston was terrific and the rest of the characters (especially her mother) were also very enjoyable. Sometimes I just need a break from the mayhem and violence and this is a sweet, uplifting, old-fashioned Christmas pleasure I try to watch every year. If you like Denzel, if you like Lionel Ritchie, if you like Gregory Hines, and especially if you like gospel music, please give this movie a try.

You have to wonder why some folks out in Hollywood try to remake that which was done so very well the first time. You can just see them sitting around the conference table talking about adding color and, oh, yeah, lets make the characters black! It would be OK if they really tried to do it better. But they are really just trying to cash in.

Such is the case with "The Preacher's Wife". A modernized color version of the Cary Grant vehicle, "The Bishop's Wife", the insertion of even this excellent black cast does nothing to enhance the story.

Denzel never seems to capture the sly charm of Dudley, the angel sent to help the Preacher. Now we know Denzel can be a charmer, but even he cannot deliver through this tired direction and uninspired script. Nothing really works in the movie (unless, perhaps, you never saw the original), the Preacher is not sympathetic enough, Whitney isn't at full strength as the title character, and even Gregory Hines can't seem to make the villain seem like much of a baddie.

A thorough waste of time and celluloid!

Okay, The Bishop's Wife with Cary Grant and David Niven remains a brilliant Christmas movie. But I must admit that its remake, The Preacher's Wife, isn't bad at all. As a vehicle for the singing talents of Whitney Houston it surely succeeds and I think the gospel setting is a great idea as well. Denzel Washington is charming as angel Dudley, Whitey does a great job as a disappointed wife (and sings wonderfully) and Courtney B. Vance is very convincing as a preacher who has lost hope.

Strangely there were not a lot of things copied from the original black and white movie. It looks like the people behind The Preacher's Wife only took the basic idea of the original movie and then made up its own story. I think the lack of commercial success is due to the fact that movies about angels don't fit in these cynical times anymore. With James Stewart, Frank Sinatra and Cary Grant in a black and white production you could get away with it. But in these modern days? I doubt it.

The Preacher's Wife is no classic, but it's a nice movie when you want to watch a (musical) Christmas film during the holidays.

This updating of "The Bishop's Wife" has much going for it. The cast is just fine, the productional values are on a high level, and the over all intention commendable.

What "The Preacher's Wife" ends up being, however, is only an average family film. The essential difficulty, as I see it, is in Nat Mauldin and Allan Scott's screenplay.

Their script seems to lack a keen sense of structure, with too many highs and peaks, often via musical performances, which emerge inserted and bloated rather than integral and balanced.

The decision to provide Whitney Houston with full-scale musical numbers tends to more distort than enhance the film's focus. After some rip-rousing bring-down-the-house gospel fests, it seems like the end credits ought to start rolling . . . instead the play goes on anticlimactically.

Director Penny Marshall might have stepped in and ordered some sharp editing to tighten matters up and shape the film into an effective dramatic form. For this seems to be not a musical, but a light comedy/fantasy with a few incidental music interludes.

How wonderful to see the excellent Denzel Washington in a role and film in which he so lovingly believes. He invests his earnest effort into making this a winner, and he's most ingratiating in the part. Houston makes a nice costar, and the entire cast is delightful.

There's much to enjoy in "The Preacher's Wife," and there are some mighty pleasant humanistic expressions to savor and delight in along the way.