The Preacher's Wife
Good-natured Reverend Henry Biggs discovers that his marriage to choir mistress Julia is straining under his constant absence as he devotes himself to the deprived neighborhood they live in. To add to the pressure, his church faces threats from property developer Joe Hamilton. In a moment of desperate prayer for help, Biggs seeks divine intervention—and it arrives in the form of an angel named Dudley.
Director(s)
Penny Marshall
H.H. Cooper
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CinemaSerf
No, no, no, no, no! What in the name of all that's holy convinced anyone that a remake of the delightfully charming "Bishop's Wife" (1947) ought to happen? Instead of that charmingly engaging story of a pre-occupied Bishop losing sight of what really mattered, we get this noisy and aggressive vehicle for Whitney Houston to prove she can shout her songs at us. She's married to the affable minister (Courtney B. Vance) whose church is facing an existential crisis. It's a lone beacon of hope in a deprived area of the city but it's also a prime site for redevelopment, and "Joe" (Gregory Hines) is determined to turn the steeple into a skyscraper. All this rearguard action is taking it's toll on his marriage though, so up pops "Dudley" (Denzel Washington) as the mischievous angel intent on helping this particular lost sheep. Thing is, the more he involves himself in the affairs of this couple the more he begins to fall for "Julia", she for him and nobody is really making any progress on the job in hand. The rest of this is faithful enough to the original but way too much of this is contrived to give it's singing star an opportunity to belt out "I Believe in You and Me" as well as a few more typically seasonal numbers. We all know she could sing, but this isn't singing. It's just showing off. She has a formidable vocal range but the deliveries here lack any kind of subtlety or delicacy. It's as if she was using her own voice instead of a wrecking ball to help out "Joe"! It's just completely class-free, charm-free and I don't think it need to have been made at all. Nobody's finest moments here, sorry.
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The Preacher's Wife FAQs
The directors of The Preacher's Wife are Penny Marshall and H.H. Cooper.
The cast of The Preacher's Wife includes Lex Monson as Osbert, Jernard Burks as Pizza Man, William James Stiggers Jr. as Billy Eldridge, Courtney B. Vance as Reverend Henry Biggs, Jenifer Lewis as Margueritte Coleman, Denzel Washington as Dudley, Adam Alexi-Malle as Robbery Witness (uncredited), Harsh Nayyar as Christmas Tree Man, Loretta Devine as Beverly, Jamie Tirelli as Liquor Store Owner, George Coleman as Sax Player, Anibal O. Lleras as Pizza Man (uncredited), and more.
The duration of The Preacher's Wife is 2h 3 mins.
Yes. You can watch the The Preacher's Wife trailer on this Fanbiz page on Fanziz.
You can watch The Preacher's Wife on Google Play Movies (Rent), YouTube (Rent), Google Play Movies (Buy), and YouTube (Buy). Check this Fanbiz page for the latest platforms.
The Preacher's Wife was released on 13 Dec 1996.
The Preacher's Wife is listed under Family, Fantasy, Drama, Comedy, and Romance on Fanbiz.
The Preacher's Wife has 1 review on Fanziz, with an average rating of 5.0/10. One reviewer wrote: "No, no, no, no, no! What in the name of all that's holy convinced anyone that a remake of the delightfully charming "Bishop's Wife" (1947) ought to happen? Instead of that charm..."
