Am I Missing Something?

Absolutely brilliant

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

SAINT RALPH is a pleasant surprise most watchers will find hidden away (or absent) at most video rental stores simply because it didn't get a lot of notice in the States. Filmed entirely in Canada by a Canadian crew and cast, this film will make it to the top of many favorites lists once viewers get a chance to see it.If you're a fan of HOOSIERS, ROCKY, or some other underdog story, you'll slowly fall for Saint Ralph in similar style.The story is that of a troubled 14-year-old at a parochial Catholic school in 1950s Ontario. Ralph Walker is his name (relative unknown Adam Butcher) and he's acting out at school. He smokes. He uses God's name in vain. He has "impure thoughts." And he has a mother who is very sick; a type of brain cancer is easily surmised. Ralph's father died in WWII and he now lives alone in a dilapidated home. Using school chum Chester (Michael Kanev) to help fake notes from Ralph's non-existent grandmother and grandfather, Ralph is able to fool the Catholic school's principal, Father Fitzpatrick (Gordon Pinsent, THE GOOD SHEPHERD), into believing he resides with his aging grandparents.Ralph's mother Emma (Shauna MacDonald) eventually slips into a coma and Ralph is now truly alone in the world. Grasping at anything that is more anchored than himself, Ralph begins falling apart but holds himself together thanks to a kindly nurse at the hospital named Alice (Jennifer Tilly, TIDELAND) and a good-hearted priest named Father George Hibbert (Campbell Scott, MUSIC AND LYRICS). Father Hibbert one day initiates an interesting discussion in class about miracles and saints. How ordinary people of the past begat divine miracles. And when Ralph was at the hospital recently, Nurse Alice told him it would take a miracle for his mother to wake up from her coma. The idea to do something saintly so that his mother will awaken comes to him and he settles on winning the Boston Marathon. With the help of Father Hibbert's training, Nurse Alice's weight-lifting, and his classmates wavering support, Ralph eventually runs the Boston Marathon and ... we'll have to stop there.Uplifting isn't a word I would associate with myself, simply because I'm not a religious person. But one not need be to enjoy the messages entrenched in Saint Ralph. The uplifting music (Hallelujah), and the study of human endurance and friendship are a part of each of us regardless of our "godly" make-up. It is hope that'll keep viewers watching, not any sense of the miraculous, simply because many can't or won't believe in miracles (myself among them).It is also nice that the makers of this excellent movie didn't drop to the lowest religious denominator and thankfully made Ralph be a horribly flawed young man (including drinking, enjoying things that rub against his crotch, cursing, smoking, and nearly giving up on everything and everyone).The final sequence of scenes will remain with many as we watch Ralph return to school from Boston and meet up with many of his detractors and supporters. Yeah, it's uplifting but hallelujah! it's not corny.

When i bought the DVD i had never heard of this picture. I didn't know if it was going to be good or bad. I just wanted to see a movie about running.I just saw saint ralph for the fourth time and i gotte confess this movie is better more inspiring than Chariots of fire. Alright, it is no rocky but yet, it never tries to be. And this is why it works. Sometimes it is very good that a movie does not take itself too seriously. I mean, the story is not very realistic. And I'm not talking about whether it is possible that a boy can whin the marathon or not, I'm talking about Ralhp. What Child would behave like Ralph does, when his mother is on the edge of death??? But that doesn't matter, because saint ralph actually is at no time a drama, it is always satisfied with being a comedy. Thus it rises from a comedy and becomes an inspiring story at times, and when it doesn't you don't really care, cause you're not looking at it as a drama, but as a comedy. In the end it is 8/10 in every aspect. The acting, the dialouge, the soundtrack, and the directing. No outstanding achievement but always definitely above average.

My summary should be taken to mean that I am that little boy, or at least I was years ago. I was surprised at how closely I could identify with the lifestyle of Ralph and with his expressions concerning his experiences.I too grew up in a god-centered universe, one which attempted to impose values for no other apparent reason than short-term control over my actions. I am atheist now, thanks in some part I feel, to that over-bearing presence.I deeply enjoyed the acting of Father H because of his portrayal of a contemplative yet self-restricting do-gooder. Deeply enjoyed the acting of Father F because of his portrayal of a man closely guarding his perspective by limiting the creative output of those around him, meanwhile exposing his self-hatred with miniature explosions of emotion. Whew, powerful men! And deeply enjoyed Ralph, who caused in me bursts of laughter as he discovered with an open mind -- beautiful!Given the "type" of movie, I can easily say my 10/10 vote reflects a straight forward opinion -- I mostly demand consistently portrayed characters, and then simply hope for a good story. But I must admit, that I was partial due to my close association with the experiences of Ralph, a hero!

Being a Canadian and in the "arts" (i.e broke), I recognized this film as a Canadian offering from the first frame. And this is one Canadian film that can hold its own against anything out there. It makes me think of some the brilliant Belgium films of late.Sentimental? You bet! But young Butcher and his director want you to get on your running shoes and run like the wind with them.The film captures, with just the right touch, all that is good in Ralph. It's a "root for the right little guy" type of film which goes beyond being parochial. Hats off to the director/writer McGowan and young Butcher for doing a slap-up job.Hugh