When a young woman becomes afflicted by stigmata, a priest is sent to investigate her case, which may have severe ramifications for his faith and for the Catholic Church itself.
A priest from the Vatican is sent to Sao Paulo, Brazil to investigate the appearance of the face of the Virgin Mary on the side of a building. While there he hears of a statue of the Virgin Mary bleeding tears in a small town outside of the city. Meanwhile, a young woman in the U.S. begins to show signs of stigmata, the wounds of Christ. The priest from the Vatican links up with her and cares for her as she is increasingly afflicted by the stigmata. Her ranting and raving finally begins to make sense to the priest who starts to question what his religion has stood for for the last 1900 years.Written by
Jeff Mellinger <jmell@uclink4.berkeley.edu>
When Frankie talks with Andrew by first time in the coffee shop, Frankie states that she's 23 years old. Patricia Arquette was 31 at the point of the movie's premiere, 8 years older than her character (7 during the filming). See more »
Goofs
When Frankie is being wheeled down the ER hallway near the beginning of the film, she is wearing pink lipstick (strange enough, since she just came from the bath). But moments later when she is revived on the ER table and the doctor is talking to her, she is wearing dark red lipstick. See more »
The DVD features an optional director's alternate ending from the theatrical version. In the scene near the end after Frankie (Patricia Arquette) is freed from her affliction, Father Kiernan (Gabriel Byrne) carries her outside in his arms and sits at a bench, and we see her collapse in his arms. He looks up to see her holding a bird in her hand, then she walks away. After she apparently walks away, he looks back down to see her lifeless body still in his arms -- she actually died from the fifth stigmata and he watched her soul depart. In the theatrical version, after she walks away with the bird, Father Kiernan is left alone on the bench, and the impression is that she's "cured" and lives the rest of her life naturally. See more »
Frankie Paige (Patricia Arquette) is a hip 20-something New Yorker who faces a nasty wake-up call when she gets randomly attacked by an unseen force, puncturing her wrists. While the hospital calls it a suicide attempt, the Vatican thinks she may be showing signs of stigmata and sends a priest (Gabriel Byrne) to investigate.
This is one of the more clever "religious horror" films that I've seen. Using a young atheist girl as the recipient of stigmata is an original and intriguing concept. The various violent scenes where the fabulously stylish Arquette is attacked are gory and horrific, but so gorgeously shot that you cannot take your eyes away. Unfortunately, there are too many boring scenes of babbling priests. There was a bit of controversy when this was released because it hypothesizes about some very horrific skeletons in the closet of the Catholic church. The DVD features the Director's alternate ending that is decidedly less Hollywoodized than the theatrical release, but leaves the story in a confused, contradictory space. Recommended for fans of religious and stylish horror. My Rating: 7/10
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Frankie Paige (Patricia Arquette) is a hip 20-something New Yorker who faces a nasty wake-up call when she gets randomly attacked by an unseen force, puncturing her wrists. While the hospital calls it a suicide attempt, the Vatican thinks she may be showing signs of stigmata and sends a priest (Gabriel Byrne) to investigate.
This is one of the more clever "religious horror" films that I've seen. Using a young atheist girl as the recipient of stigmata is an original and intriguing concept. The various violent scenes where the fabulously stylish Arquette is attacked are gory and horrific, but so gorgeously shot that you cannot take your eyes away. Unfortunately, there are too many boring scenes of babbling priests. There was a bit of controversy when this was released because it hypothesizes about some very horrific skeletons in the closet of the Catholic church. The DVD features the Director's alternate ending that is decidedly less Hollywoodized than the theatrical release, but leaves the story in a confused, contradictory space. Recommended for fans of religious and stylish horror. My Rating: 7/10