Critic Reviews
Third Miracle, The (1999) Rank 5 Reviews
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based on (86) reviews
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San Francisco Chronicle (Peter Stack)
An earthy, sexy mystery. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at San Francisco Chronicle (Peter Stack)
One Guy's Opinion (Frank Swietek)
Cinema em Cena (Pablo Villaça)
Matinee Magazine (Chuck Rudolph)
What's ultimately best about The Third Miracle is how small and quiet a film it is. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Matinee Magazine (Chuck Rudolph)
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (Philip Martin)
...a thinking person's version of the millennial spiritual angst movie ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (Philip Martin)
The Land of Eric (Eric D. Snider)
In order to be declared a saint, one must have three miracles. Two are discussed in the movie, though their validity is the central issue at hand. The third miracle must be important, as it gave the film its title. What that miracle is, is suggested ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at The Land of Eric (Eric D. Snider)
SF, Horror and Fantasy Film Review
1999 was a year when Catholicism made a surprise full-blooded return
to movies with the likes of The
Divine Ryans (1999), Dogma (1999), Stigmata (1999),
even End of Days (1999).
Perhaps what made this upsurge of Catholic-themed movies ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at SF, Horror and Fantasy Film Review
San Francisco Examiner (Wesley Morris)
San Francisco Chronicle (Peter Stack)
filmcritic.com (Christopher Null)
In the immortal words of singer Fats Waller, "I believe in miracles...." Who else is a believer? Agnieszka Holland, best known for poetic period pieces like Washington Square and trite garbage like Total Eclipse, who finally ventures into ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at filmcritic.com (Christopher Null)
Los Angeles Times (Kevin Thomas)
Has the gritty, intimate feel of an Eastern European film--and packs the power of a genuine revelation. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Los Angeles Times (Kevin Thomas)
A Guide to Current DVD (Aaron Beierle)
filmcritic.com qualifies for sainthood
Hollywood Jesus Visual Review
DVD Authority.com ("Fusion3600")
San Francisco Examiner (Wesley Morris)
Harris, Heche make unholy twosome. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at San Francisco Examiner (Wesley Morris)
Film Threat, Hollywood's Indie Voice
On the heels of faith questioning flicks Stigmata and Dogma, this miracle seeker from the director of Europa Europa and The Secret Garden is more poignant and provocative, but yet the material still comes off as trumped up and hollow. The ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Film Threat, Hollywood's Indie Voice
Philadelphia Inquirer (Carrie Rickey)
So profoundly does The Third Miracle live up to its title that Agnieszka Holland's exceptional meditation upon a priest's crisis of faith might win the endorsement of archdiocese and agnostic alike. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Philadelphia Inquirer (Carrie Rickey)
Portland Oregonian (Shawn Levy)
It's a handsome film with a palpable core of piety, but it isn't as successful in depicting secular events as spiritual ones. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Portland Oregonian (Shawn Levy)
Austin Chronicle (Marjorie Baumgarten)
Ever since The Exorcist, we've come to expect movies about the spirit world to be filled with lots of special effects, flashing lights, and green-pea soup. The popular conception of contact between human beings and their spiritual counterparts tends now ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Austin Chronicle (Marjorie Baumgarten)
Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
Here is a rarity, a film about religion that is neither pious nor sensational, simply curious. No satanic possessions, no angelic choirs, no evil spirits, no lovers joined beyond the grave. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
Here is a rarity, a film about religion that is neither pious nor sensational, simply curious. No satanic possessions, no angelic choirs, no evil spirits, no lovers joined beyond the grave. Just a man doing his job. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
Reel.com
The second American film in as many months to directly address faith and the Catholic church, Agnieszka Holland's (The Secret Garden, Europa, Europa) The Third Miracle is a much more interesting experience than Kevin Smith's religious satire/potty ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Reel.com
ReelViews (James Berardinelli)
In the wake of their recent condemnations of "anti-Catholic" movies like Dogma and Stigmata, I wonder what the Catholic League will make of the newest motion picture from Polish director Agnieszka Holland, Third Miracle. Like both of those "controversial" ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at ReelViews (James Berardinelli)
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
Like other films by Polish director Agnieszka Holland (The Secret Garden, Total Eclipse), it doesn't make for the most dynamic two hours. Yet it's intelligent, nonexploitive and a good showcase for lead Ed Harris -- whose performance ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
SPLICEDwire (Rob Blackwelder)
Deseret News, Salt Lake City
AmateurHomeTheater.com
LA Weekly (Ella Taylor)
Harris and Heche are simply electric together, and "Hill Street Blues'" Charles Haid is wonderfully brash as the venal bishop. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at LA Weekly (Ella Taylor)
The New York Times (Stephen Holden)
This intelligent, well-acted movie is not helped by the fact that its story in some ways parallels that of "Stigmata," the trashy supernatural spookfest that flared briefly at the box office earlier this year. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at The New York Times (Stephen Holden)
The Cranky Critic (Chuck Schwartz)
eFilmCritic Reviews
Wolf Entertainment Guide (William Wolf)
Anchorage Press (Brenda Sokolowski)
Los Angeles Times (Kevin Thomas)
Pay close attention to the fast-moving opening sequence of "The Third Miracle," Agnieszka Holland's complex, challenging and impressive film from the Richard Vetere novel. A title card announces that we're in Bystrica, a quaint town in Slovakia, 1944. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Los Angeles Times (Kevin Thomas)
Austin Chronicle (Marjorie Baumgarten)
The problem with The Third Miracle is that it is thematically ambiguous and never lays out its position on whether it thinks saints are or are not real. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Austin Chronicle (Marjorie Baumgarten)
Entertainment Weekly (Lisa Schwarzbaum)
Suggests that finding one good priest is a feasibility, but it takes a miracle to meet one as hubba-hubba as Ed Harris. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Entertainment Weekly (Lisa Schwarzbaum)
Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Paula Nechak)
A foreign film feel despite its strong American cast. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Paula Nechak)
PopMatters (Renee Scolaro Rathke)
Reel.com (Matt Reichl)
The Boston Phoenix
Looking Closer (Steve Lansingh)
Planet Sick-Boy (Jon Popick)
Albuquerque Alibi (Devin D. O'Leary)
eye WEEKLY (Tom Lyons)
culturevulture.net, Choices for the Cognoscenti
Screen It! Entertainment Reviews for Parents
Philadelphia City Paper (Sam Adams)
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Spirituality & Health (Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat)
Miami Herald (Phoebe Flowers)
It's not particularly plausible or well-developed, but it does allow the two seasoned actors to share a sexually tense, vodka-fueled scene at Helen's grave. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Miami Herald (Phoebe Flowers)
New York Post (Lou Lumenick)
A flawed drama offering a rare look at the Catholic Church's canonization process. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at New York Post (Lou Lumenick)
ShowBIZ Data
A Sony Pictures Classic Release of an American Zoetrope/ Haft Entertainment/Franchise Pictures Production; Executive Produced by Ashok Amritraj, Francis Ford Coppola and Elie Samaha; Produced by Fred Fuchs and Steven Haft; Written by John Romano and ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at ShowBIZ Data
The Onion A.V. Club (Scott Tobias)
In the movies at least, Catholicism exists to be challenged, but rarely are its doctrines used for anything more substantial than a jumping-off point for infantile humor (Dogma) or lurid pseudo-spiritual horror (Stigmata, The Exorcist). For all its ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at The Onion A.V. Club (Scott Tobias)
Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)
A stiffly told story of how miracles are proven by the Roman Catholic Church and how the church goes about choosing a saint. The film's leaden pace and pancake look and wooden acting, are all major detractions. The only possible exception in the ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)
Palo Alto Online (Jeanne Aufmuth)
Hollywood Report Card (Ross Anthony)
A little slow in getting started, "Third Miracle"
builds well, Ed Harris filling the screen with
brilliant acting.
Tip-toeing along some of the same lines as
"Stigmata,"
this film ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Hollywood Report Card (Ross Anthony)
AboutFilm.com (Jeff Vorndam)
The Third Miracle did not involve me as entertainment, or explore its themes as well as it could have, but there is interesting material for those who are dedicated to finding it. Ed Harris, whose last bad performance was during the Carter ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at AboutFilm.com (Jeff Vorndam)
DVD Verdict (Nicholas Sylvain)
The (Georgetown) Hoya
New York Times (Stephen Holden)
TV Guide (Ken Fox)
Without offering any hard and fast solutions to the essential mystery, this is a thought provoking drama about the nature of belief and devotion that never feels exclusionary. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at TV Guide (Ken Fox)
Film Threat (--)
Boxoffice Magazine
Box Office Magazine
Boxoffice Magazine
Palo Alto Weekly (Jeanne Aufmuth)
Steve Rhodes
The church employs priests ostensibly to discover saints but actually to prove contenders unworthy of canonization. Chief among these debunkers is Father Frank Shore (Ed Harris), known as "the miracle killer." A cynical man, who has long since given up ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Steve Rhodes
Chicago Reader (Lisa Alspector)
This spiritual thriller is too wooden to be taken as seriously as was clearly intended. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Chicago Reader (Lisa Alspector)
Boston Globe (Jay Carr)
Takes on provocative and stimulating subject matter, but can't bring it into satisfying dramatic focus, stranding three strong actors who are superior to their material. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Boston Globe (Jay Carr)
Film.com (Peter Brunette)
The first half of The Third Miracle is very good...but the second half of the film, alas, turns into deep TV-mode. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Film.com (Peter Brunette)
DigitalVD.de (Tino Hahn)
Mr. Showbiz (Michael Atkinson)
Few other 1999 films are as filthy with tantalizing elements as Agnieszka Holland's The Third Miracle, and of those that come close, none other is as pointless, confused, or unsatisfying. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Mr. Showbiz (Michael Atkinson)
ShowBIZ Data (--)
New York Daily News (Jami Bernard)
It tries to be more existential than gumshoe but falls way short. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at New York Daily News (Jami Bernard)
Reeling Reviews (Robin and Laura Clifford)
Washington Post (Desson Thomson)
I'd give this movie about half a miracle. ...read the complete Third Miracle movie review at Washington Post (Desson Thomson)
User Reviews
by Andre Zitouniadis... on September 12, 2009
Great price, service and fast, Ummmm who is that "Other" service which I have used for shopping? Although it is always a good idea to compare prices, but Amazon Almost always comes out on top. ...
by Asherville on August 05, 2009
and Ed Harris is spectacular. This is a powerful, thought-provoking film and Anne Heche, wacky though she may be, does a very fine job here, too.
A film to engender a good deal of conversation about belief and unbelief, about the nature and ...
by Douglas W. Alexan... on December 06, 2008
The vendor shipped on time, the product arrived timely and was exactly as described in the advertising. Excellent service. ...
by Michael P. Sherma... on August 25, 2008
The Third Miracle did occur. The Third Miracle and beyond involved the priest tasting type A blood shed from the Statue of Mary. The blessed blood was subsequently 1) transferred by the priest's kiss and saved a girl's life for a second time, 2) the ...
by guadalupano on January 03, 2006
I have been watching and rewatching this film since it was released. This movie became one of my favorites after seeing only the first 30 minutes of it. The story frollows a priest struggling with his own faith as he acts as postulator for the cause of a ...
by April J. Brown "a... on August 02, 2005
I'm Protestant, but this is one of my all-time favorite films. This story, which features a Catholic priest who is struggling with his faith and then must investigate miracle claims of a woman nominated for sainthood, is probably enriching viewing for ...
by Reader in NC on July 31, 2005
This movie is a well-kept secret!! This is not an action movie. People are not shot up and cars blown up. There is no sex. This is just a great movie with some of today's finest actors/actresses. Ed Harris, a priest and postulator for the Catholic ...
by Carlos Vazquez Qu... on April 05, 2005
Over all in our modern society, thirsty of things made easy. This movie is very interesting as it deals with a main theme and some derivations of it: do exists the saints truly? There are people capable to do miracles? And if yes: are a saint those ...
by Juliana LHeureux ... on February 12, 2005
When I received the DVD "The Third Miracle" as a gift, I thought it would be a nice old world type Church story. I assumed it was about the intriguing series of events implored by the stuffy Vatican to qualify a person for canonization to sainthood. Boy! ...
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