Leap of Faith

A masterpiece of both the secular and the Godly were mixed in this amazingly wonderful movie. Steve Martin is at his absolute best playing con man faith healer Jonas Nightingale. His approach as a con man/faith healer/snake oil salesman is 100% believable. With some of the most beautiful gospel music, and a fantastic story about true faith, Leap of Faith is truly one of the most incredible movies of life and healing. I gave it a 10.

I'm suprised that none of the movie buffs recognized the references in "Leap of Faith" to a couple of older movies. The scene to start the movie, where Jonas does a "cold read" on the policeman to elude a speeding ticket is lifted from the Tyrone Power movie "Nightmare Alley". Also, there are numerous elements in the movie that seem to continue the conversation from "Elmer Gantry" about the nature of faith, its purpose in our lives, and its irrelevance to the ones who bring it to us. The charisma of the speaker is more important than his actual belief, but the only one he can't charm is himself, setting up the dilemma that may only be solved by walking away. As entertainment, the movie succeeds to a degree, but there is a layer beneath that makes this a good movie for discussion groups, especially as a double feature with one of the other two movies mentioned above.

Any movie that focuses on religion is bound to be a controversy. If it's a parody of faith, even moreso. At a time when real life televangelists were dropping like flies, this film about a con man posing as a revival preacher surely sparked a few heated debates.

Unfortunately, if people were too offended to give it a fair look, they missed a film that was essentially a true gem. On the surface, it was glitzy & tongue-in-cheek. All the while, the messages of what faith can be comes creeping up on you quietly. Steve Martin turns in what may be his best performance ever, playing the part as only he could & then lending a very human touch. To give him even more edge, his foil is expertly portrayed by Liam Neeson, who seemed to really fit the mold of small town sheriff. Lucas Haas, Lolita Davidovich & especially the small town locals all create a perfect ensemble, while the traveling band seems like any group of traveling carnival players.

In the end, the only real message of this movie is that faith, belief & even miracles exist within the person not the truth of the establishment. One of my absolute favorite movies ever!

There is a depth of performance here, with a well-written script and a joyous celebration of con men. The role is an unusual one for Martin, who plays it straight and yet satirizes the character at the same time. Martin has never been better (OK, his hair could use work) and Debra Winger, Lolita Davidovitch and Liam Neeson lead a strong supporting cast. It also captures the small town American scene well. It's a high-tech revival show, starring Jonas Nightengale, faith healer and preacher. "Leap of Faith" is the first movie to reveal the actual methods used by some revivalists and faith healers to defraud their unsuspecting congregations.

at least 7 of 10 stars

Steve Martin's actually acting in this movie! Off course he's still in his frame act, but the good thing is, the script demanded his style, and nobody could do it better than him.

Watch when he preaches, when he dance and sing, when he talks, even when he's lost. And seemingly the other casts (Debra Winger, Meat Loaf, Liam Neeson, Lolita Davidovich, etc.) open their way to expand Martin's performance in this movie.

The movie itself is light and enjoyable, one of the best movie on it's genre.

A perfect holiday movie.