The Preacher's Wife

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The Preacher's Wife

PG

Released Dec 13, 1996

2h 4m

Fantasy

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Popcornmeter

62%

Tomatometer

47 Reviews

42%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

A cleric begins to doubt himself and is visited by an angel. The heavenly emissary is supposed to help the good reverend over his midlife crisis, but he is distracted by the cleric's lovely young wife. A remake with gospel music of the "The Bishop's Wife".

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Critics Consensus

Solid performances and a steady directorial hand help The Preacher's Wife offer some reliably heartwarming - albeit fairly predictable - holiday cheer.

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Lisa Schwarzbaum

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: A-

Sep 7, 2011

Full Review

Esther Iverem

Washington Post

There are many good reasons for going to see The Preacher's Wife.

Sep 24, 2002

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Peter Stack

San Francisco Chronicle

The Preacher's Wife qualifies as old-fashioned Hollywood movie making at its corniest and most saccharine. But the mostly African American cast puts an engaging spin on the chestnut, and it works beautifully.

Rated: 3/4

Jun 18, 2002

Full Review

Wesley Lovell

Cinema Sight

That’s the case with The Preacher’s Wife, a film that takes the classic black-and-white film The Bishop’s Wife and turns it into a glossier, minimally inspiring film.

Rated: 3/4

Nov 26, 2022

Full Review

Rachel Wagner

Rachel's Reviews (YouTube)

Incredible music and Denzel and Whitney have fantastic chemistry

Aug 2, 2022

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Dana Harris

Newhouse News Service

While the movie has heartwarming stamped all over it, the plot stacks the deck against this light comedy with a dark undercurrent of marital insecurity, failure of leadership and testing one's faith.

Rated: 2/4

Nov 6, 2019

Full Review

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Steve D

Ok but pointless remake

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

10/06/24

Full Review

Dale R

This Touchstone release is about an angel who answers the prayer of a preacher to help him see the light once more during the Christmas season. This is a remake of the 1947 film The Bishop’s Wife. Denzel Washington plays the angel and he is dripping charisma in every scene he is in. The preacher is played by Courtney B. Vance and his performance is well done. This movie is well put together and acted well. The highlight of the film is the soundtrack, but here is where it went off the rails for me. Whitney Houston plays the preacher’s wife, and the part was written specifically to highlight her ability to sing. Houston is a fabulous singer and she plays her part in this movie really well (in fact she won an Image Award for best actress for this film), but the movie felt like I was watching a Whitney Houston concert with a plot instead of a film. The soundtrack is filled with gospel and Christmas music and I highly recommend checking that out. I would recommend this movie to you if you are a huge fan of Whitney Houston or Denzel Washington, or you need a Christmas movie fix.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

07/07/24

Full Review

Scott W

I love everything,Denzel, but this remake of The Bishop's Wife drops the little moments that made the original great. Without them its just flat and predictable. B-

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

06/30/24

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D M

The Preacher's Wife, The Bishop's Wife and It’s A Wonderful Life have been euphoric holiday staples for every Christmas family get together, since they were available to watch at home. We also have a Christmas in July Gathering and binge watch all three movie films again.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/25/24

Full Review

Kerry M

This is the best feel good Christmas Movie of all time! It deserves to be up there with Its A Wonderful Life

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/23/23

Full Review

Faletta S

My Favorite Christmas Movie!!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/07/23

Full Review

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Penny Marshall

Director

Denzel Washington

Dudley

Whitney Houston

Julia Biggs

Courtney B. Vance

Reverend Henry Biggs

Gregory Hines

Joe Hamilton

Justin Pierre Edmund

Jeremiah Biggs

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The Preacher's Wife: Trailer 1

1:49

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Synopsis

A cleric begins to doubt himself and is visited by an angel. The heavenly emissary is supposed to help the good reverend over his midlife crisis, but he is distracted by the cleric's lovely young wife. A remake with gospel music of the "The Bishop's Wife".

Director: Penny Marshall
Producer: Samuel Goldwyn Jr.
Screenwriter: Nat Mauldin, Allan Scott
Distributor: Buena Vista Pictures
Production Co: Mundy Lane Entertainment
Rating: PG
Genre: Fantasy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 13, 1996, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 3, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $48.1M
Runtime: 2h 4m
Sound Mix: Surround

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