Household Saints (1993)

Unsettling drama about three generations of Italian-American women struggling to get by in post-World War II New York's Little Italy.

Director:

Nancy Savoca

Writers:

Francine Prose (novel), Richard Guay (screenplay)

Stars:

Tracey Ullman, Vincent D'Onofrio, Lili Taylor

1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tracey Ullman	...	Catherine Falconetti
Vincent D'Onofrio	...	Joseph Santangelo
Lili Taylor	...	Teresa
Judith Malina	...	Carmela Santangelo
Michael Rispoli	...	Nicky Falconetti
Victor Argo	...	Lino Falconetti
Michael Imperioli	...	Leonard Villanova
Rachael Bella	...	Young Teresa
Illeana Douglas	...	Evelyn Santangelo
Joe Grifasi	...	Frank Manzone
Dale Carman	...	Father Matthias
John Di Benedetto	...	Augie Santangelo (as John Dibenedetto)
Marie DeCicco	...	Rita (as Marie Decicco)
Nancy Marie	...	Cindy Zagarella
Sam Josepher	...	Lorraine

Storyline

Unsettling drama about three generations of Italian-American women struggling to get by in post-World War II New York's Little Italy.

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Plot Keywords:

triple f rated | saint | italian american | catholic | f rated | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for two scenes of sexuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian

Release Date:

15 September 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ein ganz normales Wunder

Filming Locations:

Screen Gems Studios - 1223 North 23rd Street, Wilmington, North Carolina, USA

Box Office

Gross USA:

$574,152

Company Credits

Production Co:

Jones Entertainment, Peter Newman Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Vincent D'Onofrio and Lili Taylor who play father and daughter in this film previously played love interests in Mystic Pizza (1988).

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Quotes

Teresa Carmela Santangelo: My whole life, I used to wonder, what would I do if I really had a vision? How would I act if I actually saw God's face? Would I fall on the floor and start foaming at the mouth like St. Paul? It worried me, it could happen anywhere. What if I was on the subway and started bleeding from my ankles and wrists? If Jesus came, would I have the sense to look for a soft place to fall?
Teresa Carmela Santangelo: But this is what it's like. You don't faint dead away. You don't worry about stigmata dripping blood on the carpet. ...

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Striking Distance/Into the West/The Age of Innocence/Household Saints/Baraka (1993)

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Soundtracks

Maybe
Written by R. Barrett
Published by Windswept Pacific Entertainment Co.
DBA Longitude Music Co.
Performed by Janis Joplin
Courtesy of Columbia Records
By Arrangement with Sony Music Licensing

User Reviews

Tragedy and Comedy

This complex and exceptionally intelligent film about two - or even three - generations of Italian-American women, makes you laugh, makes you cry. Splendid play by Lili Taylor, and Tracey Ullman is great as well. The main theme of the film is the relation of these women to love, and to to their Catholic faith about which this film has much to say, doing so in a rather ironic, yet loving and understanding way. Precisely this mode of detached but understansing irony is general mood of the film: the burlesque and the sentimental is mixed and fused together into an expressive unity, free of contradiction and dissonance: a feat very very rarely achieved by any director. So, in short, and quite simply, this is one of the finest movies I have ever seen.