Dear God (1996)

When letters written to God start getting results, and replies, people everywhere are amazed. The Post Office however is annoyed.

Director:

Garry Marshall

Writers:

Warren Leight, Ed Kaplan

Stars:

Greg Kinnear, Laurie Metcalf, Maria Pitillo

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Greg Kinnear	...	Tom Turner
Laurie Metcalf	...	Rebecca Frazen
Maria Pitillo	...	Gloria McKinney
Tim Conway	...	Herman Dooly
Hector Elizondo	...	Vladek Vidov
Jon Seda	...	Handsome
Roscoe Lee Browne	...	Idris Abraham
Anna Maria Horsford	...	Lucille Barnett
Kathleen Marshall	...	Whispering Wendy
Isadora O'Boto	...	Hot Mary
Felix Pire	...	Ramon (as Felix A. Pire)
Donal Logue	...	Webster
Sam McMurray	...	Federal Prosecutor
Nancy Marchand	...	Judge Kits Van Heynigan
Larry Miller	...	State Judge

Storyline

Tom Turner is a con man, defrauding people from their money with a variety of two-bit hustles. One night he makes the mistake of attempting to hustle some undercover cops, and finds himself in court faced with the dilemma of either going to jail or getting a real job. Choosing to stay out of jail, he gets a job at the post office working in their Dead Letter Office helping to sort Dead Letters (i.e. mail which, for whatever reason, can't be delivered). Some of the mail he recieves can't be delivered because it's addressed to God, and he accidentally answers (sending them money in the process). This starts the ball rolling as more of his co-workers get in on the idea of helping people by answering "God" mail.

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Plot Keywords:

letter | money | post office | court | con man | 

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Taglines:

Many people write to God. Somebody is answering.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for language and mild thematic elements

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 November 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cher bon Dieu

Filming Locations:

Santa Monica Beach, Santa Monica, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$22,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$3,213,045 (USA) (1 November 1996)

Gross:

$7,061,018 (USA) (10 January 1997)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Rysher Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of six films that Larry Miller has appeared in directed by Garry Marshall. The same is the case for Hector Elizondo, who's appeared in virtually all of the film's Marshall has directed as well.

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Goofs

Tom is shown driving a mid-1980s model Chevy S-10 pickup. In one scene, a shot of him turning his ignition key shows the steering column and interior of a completely different vehicle.

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Quotes

Tom Turner: See, the haves help the have-nots, and I hate to disappoint you, but we're the have-nots.

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Connections

References The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

User Reviews

Nice story but it drowns in it's own sentimentality

Tom Turner is a small time con-man making a living off passengers at train stations etc. When he is caught and sent to trial he is sentenced to jail time or to get a full time job and earn his own money. He gets a job in the dead letter office at the post office where undeliverable letters are sorted by category. When trying to steal valuables to help pay off his gambling debts he accidentally puts them in a envelope in reply to a "Dear God" letter. When the money helps some people to fix problems with their block of flats and improve security his colleagues think he did it on purpose and begin to answer some other "Dear God" letters. However how far can they go without being discovered as the media begin to pick up on the miracles.

This is a very gentle comedy that struggles with being overly sentimental in the second half. The story is quite unlikely but the film is gentle enough that the slight plot is not really a major problem. Nor is it very unlikely

• you won't be surprised to learn that every learns important lessons about

life at the end. The comedy is also very slight, it has some laugh out loud moments but outside of this it also has an overall funny feel to the film that is quite nice.

Greg Kinnear is not a leading man, but he does a reasonably good job here. Out of his colleagues Metcalf is good and John Seda (of Homicide:LOTS) gives a different performance! The cast is also fleshed out by some nice cameos from Larry Miller and Jack Klugman (better known as Quincy). Elizondo has the best small role as the Post Officer manager who slips quietly away mid-conversation unnoticed.

Overall a gentle comedy that eventually gets bogged down by being too sentimental. It really could have benefited from having a more cynical edge.