Oh, Danny Roebuck, you did it again.
You made me cry.
That’s OK.
It was a good cry toward the conclusion of “The Hail Mary,” your latest comedy drama that you wrote and directed.
“The Hail Mary,” a terrifically-entertaining film that is quite remarkable, deserves to take its place alongside the great sports-themed feature movies. “The Hail Mary” is gridiron gold.
In “The Hail Mary,” Jake Bauer (Daniel Roebuck) is a down-in-his-cups denizen of the local bar in an Ohio town where he’s about to be evicted from his residence. He can’t make the monthly rent after losing his job at the local plumbing company.
Meanwhile, there’s no heat at the Mary Immaculate School for Boys. The plumbing company, for which Jake worked, won’t make any more repairs because the parochial school has unpaid bills with the company.
Jake ends up being tasked with the repairs at the parochial school. While there, school principal, Sister Kathleen (Marsha Dietlein Bennett), offers Jake a job as school janitor, room included. Jake accepts.
After a fight breaks out among a few students at the school, Sister Kathleen sees it as an opportunity to provide the students with an activity where they can let off steam, learn discipline and achieve goals.
Sister Kathleen drafts Jake to coach the school football team, which is languishing under the tutelage of school priests, Father Michael Anthony (Timothy E. Goodwin) and Father Anthony Michael (Bret Anthony), who don’t know an X from an O nor the number of players on a football team. That’s not all that unusual. We’ve seen penalties called in NFL games for too many players on the field.
What follows is a series of ups and downs for the team at practice, for Jake as he practices sobriety, and for Sister Kathy as she practices her patience. Practice makes perfect, as the saying goes.
With all that practice, what follows for the movie-goer is a charming film that has a big plot twist. No spoilers here. Except I will say that the big reveal is what started the tears flowing for me.
The screenplay by Roebuck has a good mix of humor and drama. There are laugh-out-loud jokes, asides and sight gags. There are also heart-warming observations and nuggets of philosophy suitable for a self-improvement book. Here, that would be The Bible.
Many of the bon mots are couched in Christian beliefs, especially that of Catholicism. You don’t have to be a Catholic or a Christian to enjoy “The Hail Mary.” For those of the Christian faith, the film may resonate more deeply. The film’s themes of forgiveness, redemption and renewal should touch all.
The film is not preachy nor overtly evangelical, although the message is there for those who want to delve deeper into their faith and are seeking a more sublime walk of life.
The screenplay by Roebuck has a meandering way to get under your skin. The plot kind of sneaks up on you. The characters are well-drawn. The dialogue is distinctive to the main characters and true-to-life and believable.
Roebuck creates wonderful set pieces that under-gird the film’s characters and storyline: scenes in the basement of the school, where a heating system takes on the sense of a recalcitrant monster; a diner where the waitress can’t get Jake’s order correct, and a bar room so sticky you can almost smell the aroma of stale beer.
Roebuck (Director, “Getting Grace,” 2017; “Lucky Louie,” 2023; “Saint Nick of Bethlehem,” 2024; “Tuesday’s Flu,” 2025) elicits good performances from the cast.
Timothy E. Goodwin (Father Michael Anthony) has an impish charm. Duane Whitaker (Johnny Boy) looks like he stepped out of a Kevin Smith film. James Black (Mr. Russel) is memorable as the plumbing company owner.
Roebuck (with 272 acting credits and 21 upcoming on Internet Movie Database; “The Fugitive,” 1993; “Final Destination,” 2000, and TV’s “Matlock,” 1987-1995), in the lead role of Jake, is languid, methodical and sincere in his economical acting style. He’s so placid that an eyebrow, a shift in facial expression or a raised tone in voice can have the effect of an earthquake.
In some ways, the real star of the film is Marsha Dietlein Bennett (Sister Kathleen). She has some of the film’s best lines, whether thought-provoking or funny, or often both. Dietlein (“Tuesday’s Flu,” “Saint Nick of Bethlehem,” “Lucky Louie,” “Getting Grace”) is charming, especially in scenes where she’s called on to be a no-nonsense nun. She speaks softly and carries a big faith. Her scenes with Roebuck are lovely and memorable.
Those playing nuns are great fun, including Katie Eichler (Sister Rebecca), Kathy Patterson (Sister Clara), Francine Bianco Tax (Sister Francine), Lauren Curnow (Sister Lauren) and Kelly Herbert James (Sister Kelly).
The student football players are pivotal, whether as The Saints in practice or opposite the Bethlehem Catholic High School Golden Hawks at Bethlehem Area School District Stadium, where the Liberty High School Grenadier and Freedom High School Patriot marching bands combine for a high-time show in the film.
The other “star” of the film is the film’s main location, the former Mary Immaculate Seminary, Lehigh Township, Northampton County. It’s pristine and impressive.
Scenes at Dorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom, South Whitehall Township, Lehigh County, are Roebuck’s homage to “Where Angels Go, Trouble Follows” (1968), where scenes for the nun-themed sequel to “The Trouble with Angels” (1966) were filmed.
Cinematographer for the Lehigh Valley-lensed film is Dan Hertzog (“Lucky Louie”; “The Fries Rebellion,” 2024). The fly-over visuals by Aerial Cinematographer Scott M. Nagy are stunning.
Soundtrack composer is Alex Kovacs (“Saint Nick of Bethlehem,” “Lucky Louie”).
Roebuck has a way with words and clever titles. The movie’s title, of course, refers to the football game play of desperation, whereby a quarterback drops back and lofts a long pass to a receiver on his way to or in the end zone in an attempt to win in the final minutes or seconds of a game. The term was popularized by Dallas Cowboys’ quarterback Roger Staubach, who threw a game-winning touchdown in a 1975 playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings.
The term was popularized way before that. The movie’s title also refers to the Marian tradition of reverence and special place in Catholicism held for Mary, mother of Jesus. Saying “the Hail Mary” is a prayer, a petition for intercession, to the Virgin Mary, often repeated three times a day. Basically, we’re talking about a prayer for a miracle.
One of the most emotionally-involving scenes in the movie, “The Hail Mary,” is when the school students hold candles in the school chapel and sing “Make Me a Channel of Your Peace.” Composed in 1967 by Sebastian Temple (1928-1997), the lyrics are said to be based on a prayer attributed to St. Francis of Assisi (circa 1181-1226), a Catholic friar who founded the Franciscans order.
The “Channel of Peace” gentle melody emphasizes lyrics about peace, love and service. Look up the lyrics. It’s a song that more of us might learn. It’s a nice coda for the themes of the movie, “The Hail Mary,” an amiable comedy of manners, which in a way is a miracle in and of itself at the movies. Don’t miss it.
“The Hail Mary,” MPA rated PG (Parental guidance suggested: some material may not be suitable for children); Genre: Comedy, Drama; Run time: 2 hours, 5 minutes. Distributed by A Channel of Peace.
Credit Readers Anonymous: Stay for the end credits of “The Hail Mary” for lots of Lehigh Valley shout-outs.
At The Movies: “The Hail Mary” was seen in the digital format at The Roxy Theatre, Northampton.
Three Popcorn Boxes out of Five Popcorn Boxes
IMAGE: A CHANNEL OF PEACELike a prayer: Marsha Dietlein Bennett (Sister Kathleen), Daniel Roebuck (Jake Bauer), “The Hail Mary.”