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Film by FFWD Staff The Third Miracle starring Ed Harris, Anne Heche and Armin Mueller-Stahl directed by Agnieszka Holland Opens Friday, March 24 Frank Moore (Ed Harris) is a disillusioned Catholic priest who’s known in ecclesiastical circles as "The Miracle Killer." His archbishop extracts him from an estranged life in soup kitchens to investigate a marble statue in the courtyard of a convent in a Chicago suburb. The statue is crying tears of blood, and a local priest is requesting consideration for sainthood for Helen O’Regan, a deeply devout Catholic woman who lived in the convent until her death and whom the community believe responsible for the healing "tears." Moore is exorcising inner demons because of a previous investigation that turned out – in his eyes – to be a fraud and thus broke apart a community hanging onto their faith. Frank is nevertheless persuaded to investigate Helen’s life. His first interview with Helen’s daughter, Roxanne (Anne Heche), increases his turmoil as he finds himself attracted to the girl. After some inexplicable events, Frank begins to believe in miracles, reviving his lagging faith. He struggles to choose between his investigation and his feelings for Roxanne, which obviously diminishes his reputation as a priest. The Third Miracle, based on a novel by Richard Vetere, is a great story. In Harris, Heche and Armin Mueller-Stahl, we have good actors, and Agnieszka Holland is an excellent director. Why The Third Miracle does not live up to its potential is almost as inexplicable as the miracles revealed in this movie – it’s a good film, but it could have been brilliant. In earlier films like Europa, Europa and The Secret Garden, Holland has proven herself a director of consummate skill and diversity. With her stature, then, one could only expect brilliant performances from the likes of Harris and company. Something goes wrong, though, in a few key scenes, and Holland’s directing is to blame. When Harris and Heche first meet, their immediate attraction is clumsily staged and so superficially played out that it diminishes the impact of the priest’s internal conflict. Scenes with Harris and a young prostitute are also suspect in their staging. The script by John Romano and novelist Vetere is solid, if a tad predictable. Brilliant cinematography – the trademark of a Holland film – is provided by Jerzy Zielinski, his second film with the Polish director. The way the past is melded with the present, in texture and in grain, provides a haunting, ethereal quality to The Third Miracle. But despite the end result – it is, when all’s said and done, a commendable film – Holland’s failures in The Third Miracle are as sobering as they are surprising.

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