What writer-director Michael McGowan has pulled off is a bit of a miracle.
Comment
03/01/07
Saint Ralph (2005)
62 %
Reviews Counted: 65 Fresh: 40 Rotten:25 Average Rating: 6.3/10
Consensus:
Saint Ralph is an amiable tear-jerker that walks a fine line between being inspirational and being hokum.
Runtime: 1 hr 38 mins
Synopsis: A charming Canadian import by director Michael McGowan (MY DOG VINCENT), the 1950s period comedy SAINT RALPH follows earnest Catholic schoolboy Ralph (Adam Butcher) as he struggles with his teenage hormones, challenges priestly authority, and tries to achieve a miracle by winning the... [More]
Genre: Dramas
Starring: Adam Butcher, Campbell Scott, Jennifer Tilly, Gordon Pinsent, Tamara Hope
Director: Michael McGowan
Screenwriter: Michael McGowan
Producer: Teza Lawrence, Michael Souther, Seaton McLean
Screenwriter: Michael McGowan
Producer: Teza Lawrence, Michael Souther, Seaton McLean
Reviews
For the jaded moviegoer, here's a little film that just might restore your faith -- in movies and a whole lot more.
10/02/06
A likable little underdog-triumphs drama from Canada... This is a case where my idealistic side won out over my cynical side.
12/12/05
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10/01/05
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09/26/05
Butcher carries the film well, interpreting Ralph as a tangle of mixed-up yearnings tempered with an indomitable drive.
09/15/05
The comic aspects of this comedy-drama are overly broad and forced, while the supposedly dramatic ones are cloying and treacly.
08/26/05
This wincingly earnest comedy-drama could rival the maple tree as Canada's leading producer of sap.
08/26/05
A hooey-slathered film that combines the Catholic school humor of 'Do Black Patent Leather Shoes Really Reflect Up?' with the rah-rah uplift of an underdog sports story.
08/26/05
An overly convenient plot is the main con in Ralph, which includes a devastating fire, an assist from a celebrity and at least one miracle, all of which show up exactly when the plot needs help moving forward.
08/25/05
Canadian writer-director Michael McGowan has packed it so full of earnestness that viewers end up jogging along.
08/25/05
Ralph may be more a sinner than a saint, and his movie may be a little cheesy, but who cares - I thoroughly enjoyed following him on his quest.
08/19/05
...a small, straightforward story that has its heart in the right place, even if its hokey sentimentality keeps it from reaching the finish line.
08/19/05
The movie rests on (Adam) Butcher, and the actor proves to be a well-rounded smart aleck in the making.
08/16/05
If McGowan pushes the religious themes too hard, his greatest sin is that he leads you to believe that the story is true.
08/12/05
Pushes itself as strenuously as its young protagonist, but ultimately collapses in a welter of sentiment, cuteness and whimsy.
08/06/05
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