Leap of Faith (1992) User Reviews

Steve Martin's deepest character

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 1 February 2015]

Jonas Nightengale (Steve Martin) is a fake faith healer leading his traveling circus with Jane Larson (Debra Winger), Hoover (Meat Loaf), Matt (Philip Seymour Hoffman), Tiny (M.C. Gainey) and others. They use all the tricks in the book to con people of their money. One of their trucks breaks down in hard-luck desolate town of Rustwater, Kansas. Jonas decides to 'play' the town and get the girl, waitress Marva (Lolita Davidovich). The town sheriff Will Braverman (Liam Neeson) is determined to get rid of the fraud while Jane keeps flirting with him. Boyd (Lukas Haas) is Marva's cripple brother.

I can see why some would downgrade this for its perceived bias against the religious. This is probably one of Steve Martin's deepest characters. There is depth in this movie and compelling characters. It's not really much of a comedy but it works well as a drama. If this was made with darkness, it could be a truly great movie. Director Richard Pearce doesn't have enough style.

A secret treasure of Steve's

[Smells_Like_Cheese · 6/10 · 25 November 2006]

I am becoming a huge fan of Steve Martin's, after all we have the same birthday ;), no, I'm having fun, but I love his movies. My mom is also a huge fan and has a lot of Steve Martin movies, the next on my list of flicks to watch was Leap of Faith. She said it was an alright film, but it was always worth a watch. So I finally sat down tonite and watched it and over all, I'd say that this was a nice and honest film to watch that can touch anyone's heart.

Jonas is a con man going from town to town claiming he is a miracle preacher, Jane, his sidekick, just finds out information about the town and Jonas acts like he knows everything by miracle. Of course he and his team just take the money and run after a couple days. But when Jonas realizes the town's good nature, he starts to feel bad and falls for a waitress with a crippled brother. But things start to happen when the town's faith grows stronger and miracles really do happen.

I would recommend Leap of Faith for an afternoon of nothing to do, I think that it is an under rated cute little movie that could make you have a leap of faith for anything. Steve Martin isn't really funny in this film, but I think Leap of Faith actually showed his dramatic talents pretty well, he's awesome.

6/10

A great movie, somehow underrated

[baalsaak · 7/10 · 22 May 2012]

All good comedians, are good drama actors.

It'd been a while since I saw this movie, and I had the chance to get it, yesterday. For starters, Steve Martin was great (as he usually does), so the supporting cast.

One of the many reasons I love this movie is that it show us, graciously, a reality that many people couldn't or wouldn't accept (One of the reasons , I think, its low rate).

Do not let fanaticism cloud your judgment.

Nevertheless, if you like good stories with a nice in-message, or if you're just a fan of Mr. Martin, you can't miss this one.

Salvation lies within...

[stormleader · 12 March 2001]

A masterpiece of both the secular and the Godly were mixed in this amazingly wonderful movie. Steve Martin is at his absolute best playing con man faith healer Jonas Nightingale. His approach as a con man/faith healer/snake oil salesman is 100% believable. With some of the most beautiful gospel music, and a fantastic story about true faith, Leap of Faith is truly one of the most incredible movies of life and healing. I gave it a 10.

Tons of Potential

[lavaside-60237 · 6/10 · 24 June 2023]

If you enjoy Steve Martin, it will be watchable.

If not - it won't be.

With that said, I think this could have been a cult classic.

The major flaw - it spent too much time on his evangelizing.

(I know that sounds like a funny thing to say considering the premise of the show - but it crosses into 'you have to actually enjoy evangelizing to be able to stomach the extended scenes of it'; and lets face it, people who are watching this are watching it because they don't enjoy it.) Maybe a premise destined to fail.

'Make fun of annoying thing' via 'having a story about annoying thing' = 'just another annoying thing'.

The film also suffers from not developing his ensemble.

It shows just enough of them to make you want to know what their deal is - without ever really bringing them into the mix.

The same flaw movies like The Hobbit would still be making 20 years later. Never have an ensemble unless you're going to develop them.

Basically, the movie is 'applause funny' vs 'laugh out loud funny'.

Like a Bill Maher stand up routine.

Oh my

[SanteeFats · 7/10 · 1 May 2014]

Wow!! I literally don't know how I feel about this film. It is not a comedy in my opinion. It seems to be a soul search by two religious scam artists, Steve Martin and Debra Winger. They play two scam artist evangelicals who go from big town to big town and make big bucks. Their bus breaks down in a podunk town in need of a rain miracle. They still try to scam the extremely destitute folks out of what little money they have left. They set up a huge revival tent complete with all the fixings including lights, a whole lot of chairs, a rather disturbing white Jesus statute (Jesus was a Semite and was not white by any stretch of the imagination). Meatloaf plays the bus driver and keyboard player and does a good job in the role. Liam Neeson plays the sheriff of the town and sees right through the scam artists but has a hard time convincing the populace. In the end Martin leaves because he can not explain the healing of a crippled teen. He is on a semi out of town when it starts to rain hard. So the town and the crops are saved but is Martin turned to the good???

Religious cons take advantage of the incurable human need for faith beyond the mundane

[Wuchakk · 7/10 · 17 October 2018]

"Leap of Faith" (1992) tackles the topic of a fraudulent traveling evangelist/faith healer played by Steve Martin. One of the trucks of his religious circus breaks down in a small town in Kansas and Jonas Nightingale (Martin) promptly takes advantage of the situation by holding a camp meeting. Debra Winger plays his assistant while Liam Neeson is on hand as the skeptical sheriff who smells a con. Lolita Davidovich plays a waitress Jonas sets his eyes on while Lukas Haas appears as her crippled brother. Jonas' team includes the likes of Meat Loaf and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

This is a drama and not a comedy and owes a bit to the likes of "The Music Man" (1962), "Dream No Evil," (1970) "Elmer Gantry" (1960) and "The Faith Healer" (1921). But it goes deeper into the philosophic wellsprings of human need: the quest for meaning in life and the longing for the eternal.

Jonas justifies his show on the grounds that it makes people feel better by entertaining and inspiring them. He works the crowd with what he has learned about human nature, zeroing in on those needing him the most with the help of his 'angels,' Jane (Winger) & crew. The average person throws $10-20 into the plate and they get entertainment and inspiration in return. They go home with a stronger faith. So what's the problem? The Sheriff, Will (interesting name), sees the scam, but also sees, like realists do, the hypnotic draw of religion and the corresponding faith. He settles for trying to reach one of whom he senses genuineness.

The drama is a mishmash of kinetic parts, mundane parts, disturbing parts and moments of wonder. The ending is great, though, in that it both entertains & inspires; and you leave with a good feeling, ironically just like the people who visit Jonas' tent revival, lol.

The movie runs 1 hour, 48 minutes and was shot entirely in the panhandle of Texas (Plainview, Groom, Tulia, Claude and Happy), plus studio stuff done in Irving.

GRADE: B

Martin's Great! The Movie's Not!

[sddavis63 · 5/10 · 8 February 2001]

I enjoy Steve Martin; I think he is a marvellous actor. Rarely have I come across a movie that of his that I didn't care much for. This, however, falls into that category.

It wasn't Martin's fault. He does a good job as Jonas Nightingale, the quack faith healer and miracle worker. I didn't think he was well used, though. Yes, he did a good caricature of the quack faith healers; but aside from his personal transformation near the end that was pretty much all he was allowed to do. What a waste of a fine actor. The movie just didn't work for me.

I wasn't offended by it. I had feared when I first watched it that the movie would just be a cheap shot at Christian faith; instead I thought it was clear that the shot was being taken at people who abuse the faith for their own ends. In fact, the one true miracle that happens, in my opinion, was very cleverly shown by the director to be the result of a young boy's faith. So, the movie didn't offend me; I just didn't like it.

First off, I simply can't see Liam Neeson as a small-town, no nonsense, by the book sheriff. Who in the world cast him in this role? The movie also focussed too much in my view on the developing relationship between Sheriff Will (Neeson) and Nightingale's assistant Jane (Debra Winger.) The problem is that their relationship was neither interesting nor believable. How is it that this no-nonsense sheriff meets a girl, falls hopelessly in love within a couple of days and spends significant time chasing butterflies with her? I'm serious! Is this at all believable? The relationship between Nightingale (Martin) and Marva (Lolita Davidovitch) had more tension to it and more creative possibilities but was almost completely ignored. And what of Boyd (Lukas Haas) - Marva's son? His innocent faith in Nightingale could have been an important part of the movie; again, it was relegated to the background behind the Jane-Will romance. I just don't understand that decision at all.

One technical criticism revolves around the use of the crucifix. Although I'm not Catholic, I have absolutely nothing against the crucifix. It seemed, however, (to me at least) relatively clear that whatever Nightingale was, he was definitely not a Catholic, and since Protestants (and Protestant faith healers) rarely would use a crucifix, it seemed out of place to me. An empty cross would have been more believable in this context.

I give this a 5, beased solely on Martin's strong performance, within the limitations placed on him.

An underrated gem of the 90s

[RDenial · 10/10 · 17 November 2003]

I read some comments that thought this film might offend Christians. Nonsense. I think you just might have to be a Christian to appreciate the humor in this film. Steve did his homework in making this film which explores the seedy world of traveling charlatans masquerading as evangelists. It is a more serious film than some of Martin's other efforts, but I found it very funny as I have attended many Church services that were near identical to the ones portrayed in the film. If you have stayed away from this film because you are a Christian, I say give it a look. I don't think it will offend you that much and you will enjoy the outcome.

slight satire takes advantage of Martin's true talents

[Bluecher · 6/10 · 28 December 2018]

Finally a movie that seizes Martin's true talent: his stand-up act!

And what a bullseye his performance is: all the flailing and jerking of his career defining 70s stage work, caffeinated with a dose of early 90s grunge fatalism.

The message of the film is that televangelists are basically stand-up comedians.

However Martin's character has been described as a "con artist" instead. But a con-artist is someone who uses elaborate tricks to fool his rather enlightened victims.

Martin's "tricks" here however are merely circus tomfoolery. Appropriately he stages his shows in a circus tent.

It is this failure of distinction by the townspeople between the clown and the con-artist, where the satire of the film really hits its target.

Unfortunately the satire is a bit washed out by the fairy tale ending in which the protagonist must pay back for making a career on abusing the "Lord's" name, so that the town fools can have their "miracle".

The gospel music is great; the screenplay isn't

[steiner-sam · 4/10 · 18 May 2022]

It's a satirical drama set around 1990 in rural Kansas. It follows a four-day stay of a tent evangelist in a town of 22,000 after their caravan breaks down on the way to Topeka, Kansas.

Jonas Nightengale (Steve Martin) is the shyster prosperity gospel evangelist, added by his manager, Jane Larson (Debra Winger), musical director, Hoover (Meat Loaf), and other assistants who include Matt (Philip Seymour Hoffman). When one of their trucks breaks down, they set up their tent in Rustwater, Kansas, while waiting for the parts to arrive.

Local sheriff Will Braverman (Liam Neeson) is suspicious of Nightengale, especially because the area is in the midst of drought and has over 25% unemployment. The pretty waitress in the local diner that Nightengale fancies, Marva (Lolita Davidovich), is also wary because her younger brother, Boyd (Lukas Haas), was severely injured in an accident that killed their parents. When Boyd had earlier been taken to a faith healer, the preacher blamed Boyd's "lack of faith" for his failure to be cured.

The movie rushes along, allowing Braverman and Larson to develop a romance and for Nightengale to face some of the harm and chaos he has created. We see how Nightengale and Larson manipulate the crowd until Nightengale confronts a cure he cannot explain.

This is an interesting concept that doesn't work very well. The gospel music is the best part of the film. Steve Martin's lines sometimes sound authentic and other times like lousy writing. The plot is not believable, being squeezed into four days, and the ending takes a twist that doesn't fit the rest of the movie.

Have a little faith, my brothers!

[eg_evans · 10/10 · 4 December 2003]

Steve Martin is a great comedian. Always has been, always will be. (Even after the Out-of-Towners.) But very comedian at one point or another gets that itch. The one that can make or break a comedians career. The drama itch.

On the surface, this looks like a silly satire of traveling evangelist. But if you look deeper, you will see Steve Martin giving what is perhaps the most powerful performance of his career. Fresh from movies like HouseSitter, Father of the Bride, and L.A. Story (one of my personal favourites), Steve Martin plays a con man who's current con is working as a traveling evangelist. Despite being a movie about a con man, however, Steve Martin does something that not many people thought he could do at the time: he showed he could actually act! And in a movie that had a message, nonetheless. Yes, the man who once played the banjo with an arrow through his head delivers a message.

Yes, this movie has it's flaws - meandering on insignificant side stories while under developing others, leaving some stories unresolved - but most of these are story flaws. Faith movies (or at least good ones) have never been about stories, but about the emotions and the messages that they convey, and this movie conveys two very important messages. 1) Sometimes, all you need is faith. 2) Steve Martin can act his goofy ass off!

If you wanna see a movie with a great story and great jokes, rent L.A. Story or Parenthood. If you wanna see a movie with a great message that even an agnostic would find uplifting (see previous reviews) then watch Leap of Faith.

Good Concept, But Not Quite Done Right

[bigverybadtom · 6/10 · 15 June 2017]

Steve Martin is Jonas Nightingale, a fraudulent faith healer with an entourage and several coaches, where he travels across America to different places where he sets up tent meetings to fleece the locals of their funds. One coach breaks down, stranding them in a small town, and Jonas decides to set up his act there while waiting for the coach to be repaired. He does so, attracts a large crowd, and arouses the suspicion of the local sheriff, who investigates.

A number of problems occur with the movie, though. The locals are all too willing to be taken in by Jonas, the operation is overly sophisticated with computers and everything, Jonas readily admits to the suspicious sheriff that he is only a fraud, but worst of all, Steve Martin just doesn't fit the role of a highly charismatic con man.

Some reviewers were upset by the "Hollywood ending", and said it would be have been better if Jonas had sickened of crime. I find the "Hollywood ending" more credible, as most criminals, especially when riding high, do not voluntarily give up their life of crime, and those who do find a cause to push them to give it up. What more appropriate way than what happens in the movie?

Religion vs. show-biz...and a good cast vs. a mediocre script

[moonspinner55 · 4/10 · 25 May 2006]

Steve Martin, temporarily taking a break from his syrupy family-friendly rut, portrays a phony faith healer named Jonas Nightengale (!) who finds himself and his theatrical troupe stranded in a rural town. Martin takes some chances here as an actor, but this puzzling drama-lite can't make up its mind how cynical or comedic its ingredients should be. Debra Winger is underused as Jonas' cohort, though her relationship with handsome hick Liam Neeson proves more interesting than the main narrative. Screenwriter Janus Cercone and director Richard Pearce continually resort to the obvious, like making most of small town America look like gullible fools. This troubled production has a few sweetly-staged, low-keyed scenes but it seems to lose confidence in itself early on, becoming soft and flabby. *1/2 from ****

Leap of Acts

[albechri · 4 May 2000]

Steve Martin's actually acting in this movie! Off course he's still in his frame act, but the good thing is, the script demanded his style, and nobody could do it better than him.

Watch when he preaches, when he dance and sing, when he talks, even when he's lost. And seemingly the other casts (Debra Winger, Meat Loaf, Liam Neeson, Lolita Davidovich, etc.) open their way to expand Martin's performance in this movie.

The movie itself is light and enjoyable, one of the best movie on it's genre.

A perfect holiday movie.

One scene always gets to me...

[patty1 · 7/10 · 16 December 2019]

This movie has much to recommend it, including one of Steve Martin's first dramatic roles, a wonderful low-key performance by Liam Neeson, and rousing music led by Edwin Hawkins.

But I want to draw attention to what I find the most evocative scene, just after Boyd's miracle healing. Jonas walks out of his bus and sees all the people who have set up camp for the night after attending his revival. They have created a loving, giving community. They're playing checkers, feeding strangers, reading to children...sweet, ordinary activities that--if I'm reading Martin's facial expressions correctly--make Jonas realize that these are worthwhile human beings, not just marks. Yes, they fell for his act, but my takeaway from that scene is that their basic decency is stronger than his cynicism. Add in the uplifting music, and this is a lovely scene.

Fakin' Faith

[view_and_review · 6/10 · 14 April 2020]

I generally avoid religious movies. If I want religion I'll go to my local place of worship, not to the theater. "Leap of Faith," while humorous, was sad because there are real Jonas Nightengales out there.

Jonas Nightengale (Steve Martin) was a fast-talking con artist who passed himself off as an evangelical preacher. He went from town to town with a caravan of trucks and busses setting up big tent revivals in one city after another. He preyed upon people's beliefs to get to their money. He'd have spies feeding him information so that he could look clairvoyant, or like he's in communication with the Lord. It was nothing but a big scam, but to him it was nothing but giving the people what they wanted.

This was a case of two things can be equally true: he was a scam artist and he was giving the people what they wanted. They wanted to believe in something that would cure them, ease their pain, or make them prosperous. Jonas provided that.

What the movie drove home was that the faith of the people is what mattered most. In other words, the preacher, priest, deacon, reverend, pastor, or whoever can be crookeder than scoliosis, but as long as the people believe that's what matters. His faith, or lack thereof, has no consequence upon the individual believer. That's not to say that they should fork over their hard-earned money to every silver-tongued devil with a bible---just that they should have faith in God and not the man claiming to represent God.

Sublime last 15 minutes in an otherwise just OK movie

[magnuspy · 7/10 · 24 August 2011]

What promise this movie had! Steve Martin gives a tour-de-force performance, perhaps the best of his career in a role where he was tragically let-down by his co-stars. The story fairly meanders for most of the first half, before picking up steam and ending in a climax that packs one of the most heavy emotional punches I've seen in any film.

The person who 'cast' this movie should be drummed out of the industry. The supporting roles were filled by B-actors whose wooden performances deflated many a key scene. Debra Winger was particularly awful in this one, reciting her lines robotically without any realism whatever; I've seen middle school plays which were more convincing than some of her scenes.

However, I still recommend watching this movie for the last 15 minutes that held up in spite of Winger. Contrary to popular belief, this is not an anti-Christian movie at all, indeed, it is quite the opposite.

He's No Elmer Gantry

[ReelCheese · 4/10 · 1 May 2007]

LEAP OF FAITH takes an interesting premise but doesn't quite know what to do with it. Steve Martin is Jonas Nightingale, a fraudulent faith healer more interested in money and women then doing the Lord's work as he and his crew criss-cross the country putting on big tent revivals. A largely overlooked film, LEAP OF FAITH tries hard to blend some promising comedic elements with drama, but they mix about as well as oil and water. The film is also far too long, repetitive and lacking direction. Martin as the Elmer Gantryish star puts forth his usual likable effort, but even his considerable talents can't lift this one over the hump. A disappointment.

On my top five

[smallausi · 9/10 · 15 February 2005]

I can't believe how many people have missed the point of this movie. This is one of those movies that you can't just turn your brain off and watch. Every scene from beginning to end is intended to make you question your own faith in God. It is filled with symbolism and should be taken at a deeper level than just a movie about a con man who uses a ruse of holiness to con people out of their money. This is about God reaching down and healing a spiritually broken man. Steve Martin gives possibly his best performance ever as Jonas Nightengale; a man who's life has been less than virtuous. The supporting characters are all excellent, and the music is amazing. But what really makes this movie are the last fifteen minuets. No movie has ever had such a powerful and uplifting ending. This movie has cemented a spot on my top five list and I strongly recommend that you see it.

Lively but aimless story

[gridoon2024 · 6/10 · 25 November 2017]

Steve Martin gives an energetic performance in this lively but aimless comedy-drama, and Debra Winger (a very natural, very underrated actress) has rarely been hotter, but the film has a limited range, and it's hard to know how we're meant to interpret what happens to the Lukas Haas character at the end. It takes quite a leap of faith (no pun intended) to accept that a movie which has set out to expose miracle-workers as fakes would turn to proselytizing in the last lap. **1/2 out of 4.

A ruined gem

[steve-3873 · 5/10 · 6 December 2013]

This was almost a good movie. It started out as a very honest portrayal of the hucksterism and con jobs that all religion relies on, only to fall victim to schmalz and a fairy tale ending that destroyed all of the footwork leading up to it. This could have been an important movie on par with "Elmer Gantry" if the writers and director had just resisted the urge to sabotage their own work. Steve Martin played the huckster role with genius and Debra Winger appears in far too few movies, but in reality, hucksters of this caliber never reform, if that's the right word, until scandal brings them down, and people DO get disgusted with fleecing the innocent withOUT having to believe in mythical beings. Too bad.This movie could have had some meaning if they had just stuck to real world.

Underrated, probably for the subject matter

[dcreed · 9/10 · 26 July 2001]

This was actually a nice, little comedy that probably didn't do as well as it could have.The subject matter may have sat poorly with many, particularly in the areas of the country where such religious minstrels prey (pray?).

This takes a pretty humorous look at all aspects of the more vocal (translation: loud) purveyors of religion whether they be faith healers, con artists, or just religious "leaders" who feel it is their job to tell people how to live their lives, which includes sending in a lot of money.

continues the conversation

[rickscarborough · 17 May 2003]

I'm suprised that none of the movie buffs recognized the references in "Leap of Faith" to a couple of older movies. The scene to start the movie, where Jonas does a "cold read" on the policeman to elude a speeding ticket is lifted from the Tyrone Power movie "Nightmare Alley". Also, there are numerous elements in the movie that seem to continue the conversation from "Elmer Gantry" about the nature of faith, its purpose in our lives, and its irrelevance to the ones who bring it to us. The charisma of the speaker is more important than his actual belief, but the only one he can't charm is himself, setting up the dilemma that may only be solved by walking away. As entertainment, the movie succeeds to a degree, but there is a layer beneath that makes this a good movie for discussion groups, especially as a double feature with one of the other two movies mentioned above.