The Preacher's Wife movie review (1996)
Eagle-eyed theologians will have already asked themselves how an angel can fall in love. They have spotted a large hole in the story: Dudley is not, strictly speaking, an angel at all, but a human who died 30 years earlier and has now been sent from heaven on this aid mission. But he calls himself an angel, and one of the Three Laws of Angels is “Angels cannot lie,” so either he (1) thinks he is an angel but is sincerely mistaken, or (2) is a human, and lying.
Surely the makers of this film do not believe that humans go to heaven and become angels. As we all know, angels were created by God as his first companions, and he created humans much later, presumably after tiring of companions who never lied.
In any event, what is sweet about the movie is that all of its characters, human, angel or whatever, are good and kind and determined to make a contribution in the world. Even the villain, a property developer named Joe Hamilton (Gregory Hines) isn't really so evil. He is a board member of Henry's church, and secretly wants to tear it down and construct condos and tennis courts, while moving Henry to a splendid new suburban church with separate centers for youth and the elderly. This plan doesn't exactly put Joe Hamilton in league with Satan, and for much of the movie he qualifies as a villain only because anyone involved in real estate is always a villain in the movies.
Vance turns in a sound, touching performance as a pastor who spends much of his time visiting the sick, distributing food baskets, and helping an innocent young man defend himself against criminal charges. His weekly collection one Sunday is only $96, the church boiler has just exploded, and although he asked God for help, of course he doesn't believe the angel's story.
But his wife Julia is more interested in Dudley; she thinks he has been sent by the church council, welcomes him into her home, and before long is spending a lot of time with him; they go ice skating, and visit a jazz club. The club is one of several opportunities the movie finds to let Whitney Houston sing, and she is especially good when backed by the church's gospel choir.
