''Family Prayers'' is a 1993 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

starring

Joe Mantegna Joseph Anthony Mantegna (, ; born November 13, 1947) is an American actor. Mantegna began his career on stage in 1969 in the Chicago production of the musical ''Hair''. He earned a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play and a Joseph Jeffe ...

Anne Archer Anne Archer (born August 24, 1947) is an American actress. Archer was named Miss Golden Globe in 1971, and in the year following, appeared in her feature film debut ''The Honkers'' (1972). She had supporting roles in ''Cancel My Reservation'' (1 ...

Paul Reiser Paul Reiser (; born March 30, 1956) is an American actor, comedian, and television writer. He is known for his roles as Michael Taylor in the 1980s sitcom ''My Two Dads'', Paul Buchman in the NBC sitcom ''Mad About You'', Modell in the 1982 fi ...

and

Patti LuPone Patti Ann LuPone (born April 21, 1949) is an American actress and singer best known for her work in musical theater. She has won three Tony Awards, two Olivier Awards, two Grammy Awards, and was a 2006 inductee to the American Theater Hall of Fa ...

. It was directed by Scott Rosenfeld. It is notable for being the first film role of

Brittany Murphy Brittany Anne Murphy-Monjack (; November 10, 1977 – December 20, 2009) was an American actress and singer. Born in Atlanta, Murphy moved to Los Angeles as a teenager and pursued a career in acting. Her breakthrough role was as Tai Fras ...

, who had a non-speaking role.

Plot

Set in 1969 Los Angeles, this movie aims at nostalgia but really is more a depiction of the tragedy of a dysfunctional family. Young Andrew, a 13-year-old male on the brink of manhood, is saddled with a father who is a compulsive gambler and a mother who is immersed in a constant battle with him because of it. Often desperate for money, their dependence on Andrew’s aunt Nan for money is one more cause of tension and anxiety in an already unhappy household. As Andrew cares for himself and his younger sister, the symbol of his coming of age—his approaching bar-mitzvah—comes to symbolize more than just a rite of passage.

Cast

as Martin Jacobs *

as Rita Jacobs * Tzvi Ratner-Stauber as Andrew Jacobs *

Julianne Michelle Julianne Michelle (born September 5, 1984) is an American film actor, film and television actress. Retrieved April 5, 2010 She has appeared in more than 23 productions, beginning in 1990 when she was six years old. Personal life Julianne Miche ...

as Fay Jacobs *

as Dan Linder *

as Aunt Nan *

Conchata Ferrell Conchata Galen Ferrell (March 28, 1943October 12, 2020) was an American actress. Although she was a regular cast member of five TV sitcoms, she was best known for playing Berta the housekeeper for all 12 seasons of ''Two and a Half Men''. For he ...

as Mrs. Romeyo * David Marguiles as Uncle Sam *

Shiri Appleby Shiri Freda Appleby (born December 7, 1978) is an American actress and television director. She is best known for her leading roles as Liz Parker in the WB/UPN science fiction drama series '' Roswell'' (1999–2002) and Rachel Goldberg in the L ...

as Nina *

Allen Garfield Allen Garfield (born Allen Goorwitz; November 22, 1939 – April 7, 2020) was an American film and television actor. Early life Garfield was born in Newark, New Jersey, to a Jewish family, the son of Alice (née Lavroff) and Philip Goorwitz. H ...

as Cantor *

Keaton Simons Keaton Simons (born July 20, 1978) is an American recording and performing artist. He is signed to Best Revenge Records, his independent label created in 2012. His music has been featured on shows such as ''Sons of Anarchy'', '' Hollywood Height ...

as Mark * Milt Oberman as Al *

Gina Hecht Gina Hecht (; born December 6, 1953) is an American actress. Early life Hecht was born in Houston, Texas, the daughter of stage actress Pauline Hecht, and decided to embark on a career as an actress at the age of ten. After high school she ea ...

as Arlene * James Terry as Mike *

John Capodice John Capodice (born December 25, 1941)John Capodice
. ''TVSA.org''. is an American character actor.

< ...

as Barber #1 *

as Elise

References

External links

''Family Prayers''
at the

Internet Movie Database IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

1993 films 1993 drama films American drama films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films {{1990s-drama-film-stub