L'unica preghiera per due detenuti fuggiti per scappare è di farsi passare per preti e passare dal blocco della polizia al confine verso la sicurezza del Canada.L'unica preghiera per due detenuti fuggiti per scappare è di farsi passare per preti e passare dal blocco della polizia al confine verso la sicurezza del Canada.L'unica preghiera per due detenuti fuggiti per scappare è di farsi passare per preti e passare dal blocco della polizia al confine verso la sicurezza del Canada.
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- QuizThe fictional 1930s Depression-era town of Brandon, in which the film takes place, was designed by Wolf Kroeger and built from scratch in Canada. According to the TCMDb, "the set cost $2.5 million, the largest film set ever constructed in Canada".
- BlooperWhen Bob comes out from hiding on the shrine he fires a total of seven shots without reloading his six shot revolver.
- Citazioni
Jim: [as Father Brown, he is asked to give a sermon to the town. He reads from a brochure stuck in his Bible that says "An Encounter with a Bear"] Have you ever felt completely alone? Alone in a world of danger, and no one to rely on? Danger on every hand, in a world fraught with danger? And at the brink of death I felt in my pocket, and what did I find? What did I find?
[Opens the brochure - it's an ad for guns]
Jim: What did I find? Nothing. There's nothing there. It's all in your head. They can take the money from you. They can take the position from you. I don't know, they can whip you, people turn their back on you. Everything happens to every body. And you ain't gonna find nothing in your pocket can stave it off, nothing can stave it off! Pain, affliction, we say, power. Power doesn't do it. Cause you never have enough. Money? I don't know, you know anybody has enough, still? Trouble befalls us, everyone has their sadness in their heart. Some people are meant to be hard. I don't know. It just seems like they are. We meet them.
[holds up his Bible]
Jim: Is God good? I don't know. All I know is something might give you comfort. And maybe you deserve it. If it comforts you to believe in God, you do it, that's your business. People have guilty, you know, guilty secrets, well if that's yours, that you want to go believe in something, well that's not so bad.
[the town claps and cheers]
- Curiosità sui creditiIn the ending credits, the film is dedicated to the actor Ray McAnally who passed away shortly after this film was made.
- Colonne sonoreIn The Garden Of Tomorrow
By George Graff (as George Graffe, Jr.) & Jessie Deppen (as Jessie L. Deppen)
A lot of the movie focuses on mishaps and misconceptions, as all of the movies from this genre do. It bears resemblance to last year's "School of Rock," about a loser who was mistaken for a teacher. This time the loser is equal to a pair of two escaped convicts and the teacher position is likewise that of priests.
The story all begins with Ned (De Niro) and Jimmy (Penn) escaping from a northern jail circa 1930. After heading for the Canadian border, they find themselves pursued by a ruthless jail warden and a town of do-gooders. Luckily for the duo, right before they come to the Canadian border, they are mistaken for two long-lost Catholic priests, Fathers Brown (Penn) and O'Reilly (De Niro). After given an introduction to the area by a fellow priest (Hoyt Axton), they decide to hide out for a while using their new personas. No one would ever suspect a priest, right?
The problem is that Fathers Brown and O'Reilly are supposed to be two of the smartest priests alive, having written a controversial book about the true meaning of the chapter Revelations in the Bible. So you can imagine the fear that Jimmy experiences when he is asked to lead the church in a pray prior to a meal.
Meanwhile, the mandatory romance is inserted into the movie, using Demi Moore's single, rough, over-protective mother as the love angle for De Niro's character. Demi spits out an unconvincing northern accent, as De Niro stares at her a lot with critical eyes and tries to get her into bed. The romance is not necessary but it seems a lot more worthwhile than most of the romances in some of these films.
The movie is one of the most forgotten I have ever seen; I'd never really heard of it prior to purchasing the newly-issued DVD. But I figured De Niro and Penn couldn't be that bad, and I was right.
I think part of the reason so many people like to ignore it is that it doesn't poke fun at religion. It doesn't make the clergymen out to be strange idiots. Rather, it makes the two escaped convicts seem out-of-place in a heartwarming place. The spirituality affects Penn's character, Jimmy, and his final decision on the bridge that separates Canada from America is one that we have sensed was long coming since his fascination in the church grew.
De Niro and Penn have two of the best faces in Hollywood, and a movie like "We're No Angels" uses this to its advantage. Making up for the long gaps of laughter, the director, Neil Jordan, focuses more on his two lead actors and their reactions to situations. Most of the time throughout the film, De Niro shrugs his shoulders a lot and emits low, agreeable groans from his throat in response to questions, while Penn looks confused and bewildered. There's a great scene where an eager-to-please clergyman (John C. Reilly) asks "Father Brown" something about his book, and Penn sort of stares at him for a few moments with searching eyes, trying to find a way out of the situation.
For some reason, the mistaken identities setup has been a long-time fascination for Hollywood. Just look at "Some Like it Hot," "Tootsie," "Nuns on the Run," "Sister Act," "School of Rock," etc. I think it's because we can all relate to a lot of the situations that the characters go through, and a lot of the embarrassment they suffer. We like to watch them ease their way out of dangerous areas and lie through their teeth.
"We're No Angels" is one of the better examples of this formula executed quite well. It's not a terrific movie, but the actors are, and the script by David Mamet comes up with its own occasionally hilarious segments that make the movie uneven, but a lot more fun than you might expect. No, it's not great, but it's just funny -- and sweet -- enough to recommend.
3.5/5 stars.
- John Ulmer
- MovieAddict2016
- 19 mar 2004
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Dettagli
Botteghino
- Budget
- 20.000.000 USD (previsto)
- Lordo Stati Uniti e Canada
- 10.555.348 USD
- Fine settimana di apertura Stati Uniti e Canada
- 2.047.630 USD
- 17 dic 1989
- Lordo in tutto il mondo
- 10.555.348 USD
- Tempo di esecuzione1 ora 46 minuti
- Colore
- Proporzioni
- 2.39 : 1