Delayed Reaction: A Little Prayer

Premise: The patriarch of a suburban family realizes that he can't help his adult children as much as he'd like.

I had a lot of trepidation going into this movie. I haven't loved the films of director Angus MacLachlan that I'd seen. In particular, Junebug - which A Little Prayer looks the most like on the surface - left a bad taste in my mouth. I couldn't shake the feeling that Junebug was a movie from a more worldly, cultured person looking down on small town life. Or at the very least, it was patronizing about it. I didn't think that I needed more of that from him.

I'm so glad I took a chance on A Little Prayer though, because I really loved this movie. A Little Prayer isn't really about much. Bill (David Strathairn) lives a pleasant enough middle-class life. He's happily married to Venida (Celia Weston) and runs his own business with his son, David (Will Pullen). David and his wife Tammy (Jane Levy) live in a guest house* out back. Bill realizes David is carrying on an affair with a woman at work and doesn't know what to do about it. He loves his daughter-in-law and also doesn't want to overstep. Around the same time, Bill's daughter Patti (Anna Camp) and her daughter move back into the house after the latest dispute with her bad news husband. So, the movie is essentially about Bill realizing the limitations of his ability to help his children. There are no huge blow ups. It's a gentle movie in that way. And that's what I loved about it.

*It's not really a guest house. There's no kitchen. It seems to just be a room. The point is, don't mistake that description for thinking Bill is rich. Maybe just barely upper-middle-class...Maybe.

There aren't many people built to wear 70 as well as Strathairn. He keeps this movie chugging along in the least intrusive way. Personally, Jane Levy is the real breakout for me. I've liked Levy forever. She's a lot of why I opted to see this. I haven't seen her in this mode though. Her character is just the nicest, sweetest person, but it's the kind of sweetness that you know is a choice. She has some darkness that she refuses to let win. I would absolutely love it if she managed to get awards love for this like Amy Adams did back for Junebug. That's doubtful to happen though, since that role is sort of split between what Levy and Camp are doing in this. Still, incredibly impressive.

Verdict: Strongly Recommend