The Maldonado Miracle

I agree with the flaw stated in the above review, however, I liked this film for other reasons. First of all, there is ethnographic value to this film. The religion student may also want to check it out. Peter Fonda is no Captain America here but he shows nice depth in his portrayal of the priest. Brother Amos, portrayed by Scott Michael Campbell, is also top-notch acting. The zealous "miracle-finding" woman drove me more than a bit crazy but I believe that is to Salma's credit for its realism. Check it out, as always, if you don't expect the world to rotate just for your purposes, you will walk away feeling good about the time you just spent.

I saw this movie on Showtime, because my wife wanted to see it. I like Selma Hyek's acting, but I wasn't especially interested in the story - or what I'd heard about it. Imagine my surprise when I found myself thoroughly enjoying the film.

The acting from the main characters was understated, and perfect for the story. The cinematography was beautifully competent, and the set design was exquisite - Showtime showed behind-the-scenes snippets before and after the movie, and the brilliance that was displayed in creating such believable sets on such a small budget (often from the ground up)was nothing short of a miracle itself.

All in all, I enjoyed this movie far more than I expected to, and I think the director and her crew show much promise.

I absolutely loved this film. It is beautiful, as well as profound, in its simplicity. "The Maldonado Miracle" is a film that can be enjoyed by all audiences. The story is of a young boy (Eddy Martin) in search of his father, who indirectly and unknowingly, influences the small town where he is hiding out to make a change for the better. He is the Maldonado miracle. This film expresses such a sweet message of looking for miracles within our individual lives; sometimes they can be found in the most unlikely situations.

Selma Hayek is fantastic in her first film as director. Also, performances by Peter Fonda and child actor Eddy Martin (who, by the way, has an amazing singing voice) are very near perfect. I was able to attend the world premiere of this film at Sundance with the cast and crew. It was such a neat experience and I give "The Maldonado Miracle" my highest praise. I recommend it to everyone who can get their hands on it!

Considering it was Ms. Hayek's first film, it is a remarkable achievement. "The Maldonado Miracle" is a film of rare, quiet beauty; one that touched and moved me without resorting to sentimentality. It touches on the subject of faith, love and grace in a simple way: showing us that the sacred is in the everyday and that hope creates it's own little miracles.

Bravo, Ms. Hayek! I for one hope you keep directing and producing. Your work, along with others in the independent film community, shows the promise of a new era of cinema: one in which substance triumphs, if for a brief moment, over style.

My friends and I were pleasantly surprised by the quality of this movie. Character development was strong, and it was very interesting to get to know each of the characters, to understand their history and mentality, and to see similarities between the characters in the movie and the people I know. As I came to relate to each of the characters in their own way, watching how each of them were shaped by the goings-on in the small town was a thought-provoking experience. It was a deeply enriching movie, and I found myself thinking about the movie quite a bit over the next few weeks after I saw it.

I also was very impressed by how clean and family-friendly it was. I don't recall much swearing, except for maybe a couple of "Jesus"'s. Although some of the interpersonal drama was a little intense, there are no sex scenes or anything provocative. I was really impressed that none of the characters were glamorized or unbelievably good-looking. That made the story easier to believe, and makes me feel better about impressionable kids and teens watching it and learning from it.

The acting was generally very good, the camera directing was beautiful, and the only reason I'm giving it a 9 is because of a cheesy line near the end that was intended to make a jab at journalism and went overboard. Apart from that, watching The Maldonado Miracle was a purely positive experience.