''Leap of Faith'' is a 1992 American

comedy-drama film Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

directed by Richard Pearce and starring

Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominated ...

Debra Winger Debra Lynn Wingerhttps://www.pressreader.com/usa/closer-weekly/20200511/282084868951188https://www.discountmags.com/magazine/closer-weekly-may-11-2020-digital/in-this-issue/99961 (born May 16, 1955)https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/The_Inter ...

Lolita Davidovich Lolita Davidovich ( sr-Latn, Lolita Davidović, italic=unset; born July 15, 1961) is a Canadian-born film and television actress, best known for portraying Blaze Starr in the 1989 film '' Blaze'', for which she received a Chicago Film Critics Ass ...

Liam Neeson William John Neeson (born 7 June 1952) is an actor from Northern Ireland. He has received several accolades, including nominations for an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and two Tony Awards. In 2020, he was placed 7th on ''The I ...

, and

Lukas Haas Lukas Daniel Haas (born April 16, 1976) is an American actor and musician. His acting career has spanned four decades, during which he has appeared in more than 50 feature films and a number of television shows and stage productions. Early life ...

. The film is about Jonas Nightengale, a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

faith healer Faith healing is the practice of prayer and gestures (such as laying on of hands) that are believed by some to elicit divine intervention in spiritual and physical healing, especially the Christian practice. Believers assert that the healing ...

who uses his

revival meeting A revival meeting is a series of Christian religious services held to inspire active members of a church body to gain new converts and to call sinners to repent. Nineteenth-century Baptist preacher Charles Spurgeon said, "Many blessings may come ...

s to milk money out of the inhabitants of Rustwater,

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

Plot

Faith healer Faith healing is the practice of prayer and gestures (such as laying on of hands) that are believed by some to elicit divine intervention in spiritual and physical healing, especially the Christian practice. Believers assert that the healing ...

Jonas Nightengale and his manager Jane Larson break down in Rustwater,

, a small, rural town suffering from a long drought. Learning they will be stuck there for four days waiting for replacement parts to come in for their truck, Jonas decides to hold revival meetings to help pay for the repairs on the truck. Jonas and his staff use various cons to make it appear as if Jonas has divine knowledge granted by God. Despite his repeated diversions whenever he is asked when the drought will end, the townspeople find Jonas’s shows to be entertaining and hope-inspiring, and eagerly give their money to Jonas as donations. Local sheriff Will Braverman is skeptical and decides to investigate Jonas' past. He learns that Jonas is in fact Jack Newton, a native of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

who lived a life of crime in his teen years. Braverman shares this information with the townspeople, who have gathered for another tent revival. Jonas storms off the stage, soon returning to successfully spin Braverman's report, leaving the crowd more energized than ever, much to Braverman's exasperation. Nightengale continues his dubious ministry over the next several days as Jane and Braverman find themselves falling for each other. Nightengale attempts to begin a relationship with local diner waitress Marva, whose brother Boyd walks with

crutch A crutch is a mobility aid that transfers weight from the legs to the upper body. It is often used by people who cannot use their legs to support their weight, for reasons ranging from short-term injuries to lifelong disabilities. History Crutc ...

es following an auto accident. She explains that doctors could not find anything physically wrong with Boyd and his ailment is

psychosomatic A somatic symptom disorder, formerly known as a somatoform disorder,(2013) Pensacola, Florida Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal ...

. When asked by the driver if he is in some kind of trouble, Jonas replies, "No sir, no sir. Probably for the first time in my life". As they continue to ride along, the drought, threatening the crop harvest that is the centerpiece of the town's economy, comes to a dramatic end with a miraculous downpour. Jonas laughs silently to himself as he realizes the truth, and the film ends as he rides off into the stormy evening, hanging out the truck window loudly thanking Jesus for the rain.

Cast

as Jonas Nightengale/Jack Newton *

as Jane Larson *

as Marva *

as Sheriff Will Braverman *

as Boyd *

Albertina Walker Albertina Walker ( – ) was an American gospel singer, songwriter, actress, and humanitarian. Early years Walker was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Ruben and Camilla Coleman Walker. Her mother was born in Houston County, Georgia, and ...

as Lucille *

Meat Loaf Michael Lee Aday (born Marvin Lee Aday; September 27, 1947 – January 20, 2022), known professionally as Meat Loaf, was an American rock singer and actor. He was noted for his powerful, wide-ranging voice and theatrical live shows. He is on t ...

as Hoover *

Philip Seymour Hoffman Philip Seymour Hoffman (July 23, 1967 – February 2, 2014) was an American actor. Known for his distinctive supporting and character roles—typically lowlifes, eccentrics, underdogs, and misfits—he acted in many films and theatrical produ ...

as Matt *

M. C. Gainey Michael Connor Gainey (born January 18, 1948) is an American character actor best known for his appearances in ''Lost'', ''Con Air'', ''Sideways'', ''Tangled'', and ''Django Unchained''. Early life Gainey was born in Jackson, Mississippi. In the ...

as Tiny *

La Chanze Rhonda LaChanze Sapp, known professionally as LaChanze (; born December 16, 1961), is an American actress, singer, and dancer. She won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical in 2006 for her role as Celie Harris Johnson ...

as Georgette *

Delores Hall Delores Hall is an American stage and television actress who made her Broadway debut as a replacement in the ensemble of '' Hair''. Musical theatre career Starting in 1968 and through at least the summer of 1969 she was an original member of the ...

as Ornella *

Phyllis Somerville Phyllis Jeanne Somerville (December 12, 1943 – July 16, 2020) was an American stage, film, and television actress. She is best known for her roles in '' Little Children'' (2006), '' The Curious Case of Benjamin Button'' (2008), ''Surviving Famil ...

as Dolores * Troy Evans as Officer Lowell Dade *

Ricky Dillard Ricky Rydell Dillard (born February 25, 1965) is an American gospel musician. He started his music career, in 1987, as a Chicago house musician. His first Christian music album was ''Promise'', by Muscle Shoals Records. His next album, ''A Holy ...

as Choirmaster

Production

Filming

The movie was filmed in

Groom A bridegroom (often shortened to groom) is a man who is about to be married or who is newlywed. When marrying, the bridegroom's future spouse (if female) is usually referred to as the bride. A bridegroom is typically attended by a best man an ...

Claude Claude may refer to: __NOTOC__ People and fictional characters * Claude (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Claude (surname), a list of people * Claude Lorrain (c. 1600–1682), French landscape painter, draughtsman and etcher ...

, and

Tulia, Texas Tulia is a city in, and county seat of, Swisher County, Texas, United States. The population was 4,967 at the 2010 census; in the 2018 census estimate, it had fallen to 4,682. The city is at the junction of U.S. Route 87 and Texas State Highway ...

, though parts of the movie were filmed in Plainview, where the town water tower still has the fictional town mascot painted on the side.

Michael Keaton Michael John Douglas (born September 5, 1951), known professionally as Michael Keaton, is an American actor. He is known for his various comedic and dramatic film roles, including Jack Butler in ''Mr. Mom'' (1983), Betelgeuse in ''Beetlejuice'' ( ...

was considered for the starring role however ultimately Martin was cast. The consultant for cons and frauds was

Ricky Jay Richard Jay Potash (June 26, 1946 – November 24, 2018) was an American stage magician, actor and writer. In a profile for ''The New Yorker'', Mark Singer called Jay "perhaps the most gifted sleight of hand artist alive". In addition to sleigh ...

who was called in a 1993 article of ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' as "perhaps the most gifted sleight-of-hand artist alive".

Reception

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

the film has an approval rating of 64% based on reviews from 22 critics. The site's consensus states: "Steve Martin's layered performance transcends ''Leap of Faith''s somewhat undercooked narrative."

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

of the ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago T ...

'' gave the film 3 out of 4, and wrote: "The movie itself has considerable qualities, among them Martin's performance as Nightengale. This isn't the sleek, groomed, prosperous Steve Martin we've seen in movies like ''

L.A. Story ''L.A. Story'' is a 1991 American satirical romantic comedy film written by and starring Steve Martin and directed by Mick Jackson. The plot follows a weatherman (Martin) trying to find love in Los Angeles. It was released on February 8, 1991, ...

''. It's Martin as a seedy, desperate, bright, greedy man without hope."

Janet Maslin Janet R. Maslin (born August 12, 1949) is an American journalist, best known as a film and literary critic for ''The New York Times''. She served as a ''Times'' film critic from 1977 to 1999 and as a book critic from 2000 to 2015. In 2000 Maslin ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' wrote: "Well acted and amusingly told, featuring a fine performance by Steve Martin in the central role, this tale ultimately switches gears and takes a deeply serious turn."

Musical adaptation

The Center Theatre Group presented the musical at the

Ahmanson Theatre The Ahmanson Theatre is one of the four main venues that compose the Los Angeles Music Center. History The theatre was built as a result of a donation from Howard F. Ahmanson Sr, the founder of H.F. Ahmanson & Co., an insurance and savings an ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, with

Rob Ashford Rob Ashford (born November 19, 1959) is an American stage director and choreographer. He is a Tony Award, Olivier Award, Emmy Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award winner. Early life and education Born in Orlando, Florida and ...

as director and choreographer. Performances began on September 11, 2010, with an official opening on October 3, 2010, running through October 24, 2010.

Raul Esparza Raul, Raúl and Raül are the Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Galician, Asturian, Basque, Aragonese, and Catalan forms of the Anglo-Germanic given name Ralph or Rudolph. They are cognates of the French Raoul. Raul, Raúl or Raül may re ...

played the role of Jonas Nightengale and

Brooke Shields Brooke Christa Shields (born May 31, 1965) is an American actress and model. She was initially a child model and gained critical acclaim at age 12 for her leading role in Louis Malle's film ''Pretty Baby'' (1978). She continued to model into ...

played the role of Marva. The musical began previews on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

at the St. James Theatre on April 3, 2012, and opened on April 26, 2012 before closing after only 20 performances. Direction was by

Christopher Ashley Christopher Ashley (born July 6, 1964) is an American stage director. Since 2007, he has been the artistic director of the La Jolla Playhouse. Career Ashley graduated from Yale University in 1986, with a Bachelor of Art in Theatre.

, choreography by

Sergio Trujillo Sergio Trujillo is a theater director and choreographer. Born in Colombia and raised in Toronto, Canada, he is now an American citizen and resides in New York City. Trujillo was the recipient of the 2019 Tony Award for Best Choreography for ''Ai ...

, a revised book by

Warren Leight Warren Donald Leight (; born January 17, 1957) is an American playwright, screenwriter, film director and television producer. He is best known for his work on ''Law & Order: Criminal Intent'' and '' Lights Out'' and as the showrunner for ''In ...

, with a cast featuring Raúl Esparza as Jonas Nightengale, and Jessica Phillips as Marva.

References

External links

* * *
Faith Healers deal in phony shows and false hopes
''The Observer''

''BBC'' 9 Dec 06
Listing notes for The Faith Healers, by James Randi
which formed the basis for this film.
On Entering the Third Decade
by

Paul Kurtz Paul Kurtz (December 21, 1925 – October 20, 2012) was an American scientific skeptic and Secular humanism, secular humanist. He has been called "the father of secular humanism". He was Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University at Buff ...

The third eye
by Pat Reeder {{DEFAULTSORT:Leap Of Faith (Film) 1992 films 1992 comedy-drama films American comedy-drama films Films scored by Cliff Eidelman Films about Christianity Films about con artists Films about religion Films directed by Richard Pearce Films set in Kansas Films shot in Texas Paramount Pictures films Religious comedy films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films Films about faith healing