Keeping The Faith
rated PG-13 127 minutes Touchstone Pictures starring Ben Stiller, Edward Norton, Jenna Elfman, and Anne Bancroft written by Stuart Blumberg directed by Edward Norton
A Review by Frankie Paiva
Turning a funny joke or situation into a movie often turns into a failure. Recent Saturday Night Live movies (Superstar, A Night At The Roxbury) that were based on short, 5 to 10 minute skits were painfully boring and unfunny. Most people have heard the, "A priest and a rabbi walk into a bar" jokes, and some are mildly amused, but this joke is stretched over a two hour plus movie canvas. How long could the joke possibly last? Surprisingly, it sustains the running time, and remains worthy of attention, even if the film is too long.
Brian, the priest (Norton, also making his directorial debut with this film), and the rabbi Jake (Stiller, of Mystery Men and There's Something About Mary), are excited when old middle school friend Anna (Dharma and Greg's Jenna Elfman), is coming to visit them in New York. Both of them had crushes on her in middle school. Her flame rekindles itself in both men. Jake, whose been on one too many blind dates set up for him by women from his congregation quickly falls for Anna the moment she steps off the plane. Brian feels passionate about someone for the first time since he became a priest. Anna is a workaholic who states that she has a relationship with her phone ("We just have this vibe together") and is very charismatic and flirtatious with the two of them. She wants to continue the friendly relations between them, even if Jake and Brian's hearts say otherwise. Anna falls in love with one of them, but which one, and how that affects the other, you'll have to see for yourself. That's it. The story is pretty simple, and the priest is the only one who ever walks into a bar.
There is very little in Keeping The Faith to offend either one of the religions featured. The movie tries hard to be inoffensive and appealing and does a great job at both. This is truly, as Norton described in an interview, "A movie I could take my grandma to." But would grandma stay awake? At 127 minutes Faith clocks in at an unusually long running time for a romantic comedy, and the movie really suffers from being that long. A half hour could have easily been shaved off of the movie, which would have made it much more enjoyable. It wouldn't seem nearly as slow when it gradually turns from a comedy to a full out romance at about the half way mark. That said, the movie stays alive thanks to great performances from it's three lead actors. Edward Norton proves time and time again that he is a great actor with an amazing amount of versatility and talent, Ben Stiller makes a good comeback from last year's unfunny disappointment Mystery Men, and Jenna Elfman shows off more skill than her Dharma role will probably ever let her. Also worth mentioning are Anne Bancroft as Jake's overbearing mother and the over the top Ken Leung, who appears in two scenes as a karaoke machine salesman and is the movie's biggest treat. There are also some nice shots of New York City. Much of the humor is genuinely funny, while a few jokes fall flat, the physical comedy found in recent films isn't here. A good date movie that mixes comedy and romance into an enjoyable fable about modern day love and religion. Even though it is pretty hokey, this movie is still lots of fun.
B-
Frankie Paiva SwpStke@aol.com http://www.homestead.com/cinemaparadise/mainpage.html
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