THE PLOT THUS FAR
Good natured Reverend Henry Biggs finds that his marriage to choir mistress Julia is flagging, due to his constant absence caring for the deprived neighborhood they live in. On top of all this, his church is coming under threat from property developer Joe Hamilton. In desperation, Rev. Biggs prays to God for help – and help arrives in the form of an angel named Dudley. However, Dudley’s arrival seems to cause even more trouble…
WHAT WE THOUGHT
“The Preacher’s Wife” is a remake that tries to take a 40s classic to the modern era. However, it fails outside of being a showcase for Whitney Houston’s voice. One can say that Denzel Washington does the best he can to slip into Cary Grant’s big shoes. But, the movie was meant to be a Houston vehicle without putting too much pressure on the troubled star. You have to wonder how Washington felt during the production.
Director Penny Marshall isn’t fit to lift what’s demanded of the movie. Hell, Whitney Houston even admitted to her drug habit causing problems during the production. There’s something delightfully unsettling about the fact that Houston spent the entire movie high. Marshall’s work is pedestrian and it seems like she was hired merely to show them where to point the camera and to get actors to hit their mark. It would be lazy for television and on film it just comes across as lackluster.
The Blu-Ray comes with a featurette and trailer. The A/V Quality is a mixed bag with a DTS-HD 5.1 master audio track makes every Houston performance come to life. It’s almost like she’s singing from that grand hotel bathtub in the sky! The 1080p transfer is soft as hell and shows terrible signs of aging. I know that the studios are ragging on their older titles, but try to clean a print up. Remastering isn’t a bad word, guys. I’d recommend a rental.
RELEASE DATE: 08/07/2012
