When a young woman becomes afflicted by stigmata, a priest is sent to investigate her case, which may have severe ramifications for his faith and for the Catholic Church itself.When a young woman becomes afflicted by stigmata, a priest is sent to investigate her case, which may have severe ramifications for his faith and for the Catholic Church itself.When a young woman becomes afflicted by stigmata, a priest is sent to investigate her case, which may have severe ramifications for his faith and for the Catholic Church itself.
- Awards
- 6 nominations
- Marion Petrocelli
- (as Rade Sherbedgia)
- Dr. Eckworth
- (as Duke Moosekian)
- Cheryl
- (as Kessia Kordelle)
- Donna's Customer
- (as Frankie Thorn)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe phrase "Split a piece of wood; I am there. Lift up the stone, and you will find me there." comes from the "Gospel of Thomas" (Verse 77).
- GoofsFather Andrew Kiernan states that monks invented alcohol. Even if one grants Kiernan the benefit of the doubt and assumes that he is referring exclusively to alcoholic beverages, he is still wrong. The ancient Egyptians were drinking beer back in 3000 B.C.E., if not before.
- Quotes
[Frankie is possessed by Father Alameida]
Frankie: Jesus said... the Kingdom of God is inside you, and all around you, not in mansions of wood and stone. Split a piece of wood... and I am there, lift a stone... and you will find me.
Father Andrew Kiernan: Brother Alameida, I call upon you to release this woman. Give her grace and let her not come into the ways of harm. For through Jesus Christ we have all been saved and let us not fear any ill. For Jesus is with us, and the Unity of the Holy Spirit will remain forever, and ever. God bless your soul, Brother Alameida. And go in peace.
- Alternate versionsThe DVD release offers several scenes that were edited, reshot, or removed altogether after poor test screenings. Glimpses of several of these scenes can be seen in the movie's original theatrical trailer (also included on the DVD):
- An alternate opening where Father Almeida commits suicide by jumping off of the roof of his church. In the final cut, there is no indication as to how he died.
- A longer, much more explicit version of Frankie and her boyfriend Steve fooling around during the opening credits.
- Before Frankie's first stimagtic attack, she experiences a series of strange occurances while closing her hair salon.
- Also, before Frankie's first stigmatic attack, she comes home and is scared by her boyfriend Steve. The two have an argument.
- ConnectionsEdited into Divine Rites: The Story of Stigmata (1999)
- SoundtracksMary Mary (Stigmatic Mix)
Written by Danbert Nobacon, Bruce Duncan, Anne Holden, Louise Watts, Paul Greco,
Darren Hamer, Allen Whalley, and Judith Abbott
Performed by Chumbawamba
Courtesy of EMI Electrola GmbH and Universal Records
Universal Records under license from Universal Music Special Markets
The film centers on the experiences of a young woman who is a self-professed athiest who manages to somehow be afflicted with The Stigmata, a paranormal experience wherein the "victim" or the "gifted" (dependant upon one's point of view) is afflicted/touched by God and with manifestations of the wounds Christ suffered at His Crucifixion. These include the wounds through the wrists, the feet, the crown of thorns, the scourging of the back and finally the spear through the side.
Into the mix is tossed a mildly agnostic Catholic priest/scientist assigned by Rome to investigate supposed "miracles." Also blended into the story is a sub plot full of political goings on inside the Vatican and the attraction between the priest and the young woman afflicted. So not only does the movie examine The Stigmata, spirituality, Christian myth, and the Catholic tradition, but it explores the inner workings of the Church (to a very critical degree) and the meeting of man, woman and God. It's also entertaining.
The movie seems to be marketed as a modern-day "The Exorcist." I don't think the comparison is fair. Though there does appear to be some sort of possession story happening, it somehow ends up being mostly the desperate actions of a benevolent spirit of a deceased priest trying to get attention and bring the Truth to light. Obviously the more fundamental Christian believer familiar with the Christian mythos would find this plot element suspect, and dramatically it's only mildly fulfilling. For this reason the mature and educated viewer might find the ending of the film anticlimactic and arguably "sell out," but the casual viewer would probably find nothing questionable about the Hollywood ending. Personally, I thought it tainted an otherwise splendidly atmospheric film. The integration of Catholic mysticism with MTV-era music video filmography at times seems nearly as visually attractive as Madonna's "Just Like a Prayer" video, though not quite as sublime.
I'll give the movie 3 stars, mostly solidified by strong dialogue and exceptional performances from both Patricia Arquette and Gabriel Byrne as the woman and the priest. On it's own merits, the film manages to create a foundation from which the viewer is challenged to fill in the blanks re: the spiritual goings-on, but it loses points where it attempts to find cheap thrills and reinvent the spiritual-psychological horror portrayed in The Exorcist by turning an interesting and engaging look at mystic spirituality's interaction with the 20th Century's narcissistic cynicism into something more akin to the later OMEN movies.
- jester-30
- Sep 9, 1999
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official site
- Languages
- Also known as
- Toby's Story
- Filming locations
- Eastern Columbia Building - 849 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, California, USA(appears in several scenes and may be where patrica arquette's apartment is located. she is seen on the roof of this building.)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $29,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $50,046,268
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $18,309,666
- Sep 12, 1999
- Gross worldwide
- $89,446,268
- Runtime1 hour 43 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1