New U.S. Release

Joshua

Read other reviews about this film

Powered By

Tony Goldwyn, carrying tree trunk, is title character in 'Joshua,' which deals with a low-key Second Coming.

Most Viewed: Fall Out Boy still standing(5438 views) Super Bowl ad surprise(1781 views) Valentine's Day(1768 views) Super Bowl breaks ratings record(1715 views) 'Dear John' tackles 'Avatar' at box office(1341 views) Michael Chiklis is 'Family'(1098 views)

Based on the first novel in popular series penned by Joseph Girzone, "Joshua" introduces title character as an amiable drifter who inexplicably appears in Auburn, a sleepy little town that makes Mayberry look like a burgeoning metropolis. (At one point, someone receives a letter addressed to "Auburn, U.S.A.") As soon as he arrives, Joshua (Goldwyn) establishes himself as a beneficent do-gooder by helping to rebuild a fire-damaged black Baptist church.

He also encourages a young guitarist to play for a Christian rock band, comforts a recently widowed TV news reporter, gives cooking tips to his unhappily married landlady (Colleen Camp) and even offers lessons in fishing and pool-playing to Father Pat (Kurt Fuller), a bumbling but well-meaning Catholic priest.

And when he's not otherwise engaged, Joshua raises the dead and restores eyesight to the blind. No kidding.

Father Pat's superior, the stern-faced Father Tardone (Abraham), hires Joshua, an accomplished woodcarver, to sculpt a statue for the local church. But as time passes and Joshua's good deeds accumulate, Tardone suspects the worst of the soft-spoken stranger, and goes so far as to warn Rome about the possible growth of a personality-based cult.

Underwhelming climax has Joshua transforming Tardone into a kinder, gentler priest, then giving a kind of spiritual pep talk to the pope (an effective cameo by Giancarlo Giannini) during a tete-a-tete in the Vatican.

For most part, "Joshua" artfully dodges the question of whether title character really is Jesus Christ. Final scenes erase all doubt, however, which might be more than a little distressing to those viewers who sincerely believe that the Second Coming is a tell-tale sign that the world as we know it is about to end.

John Purdy's direction is unremarkably bland, and the Brad Mirman-Keith Giglio screenplay is as scintillating as a by-the-numbers Sunday School sermon. Overall, though, pic is much cheerier and more technically accomplished than "The Judas Project" (1993), its best-known predecessor in the modern-day Christ subgenre. Vet lenser Bruce Surtees provides the attractive cinematography, and Christian pop tunes on soundtrack are infectiously feel-good ditties.

Goldwyn rises to challenge of tricky lead role with low-key, self-effacing charisma, while Abraham wisely restrains any impulse toward over-the-top villainy.

Fuller has to carry a lot of symbolic weight -- his character is a fisherman, just like many of the original apostles, get it? -- and must underscore the obvious on more than one occasion. (After a "last supper" with the Vatican-bound Joshua, he needlessly announces to other friends at the table: "There are 12 of us here!") It's no small credit to Fuller's engaging qualities as an actor that he doesn't seem totally absurd.

Camera (Deluxe color), Bruce Surtees; editor, Richard Nord; music, Michael W. Smith; production designer, Brian Eatwell; sound (Dolby DTS/SDDS), Curt Frisk; assistant director, Scott Metcalfe; casting, Monika Mikkelsen, Jane Alderman. Reviewed at Edwards Grand Palace Stadium 24, Houston, April 29, 2002. MPAA Rating: G. Running time: 90 MIN.