“Ordinary Angels” is another polished, crowd-pleasing drama from Kingdom Story Company — the most successful faith-based production unit of the last several decades. Set in Kentucky in the 1990s, it tells the inspiring true story of Sharon (Hilary Swank), a Louisville hairdresser who, for reasons she can’t explain, decides to rally the community around Ed (Alan Ritchson), a widower struggling to make ends meet. One of Ed’s two young daughters is battling congenital liver disease, and as she languishes on the waitlist for a life-saving transplant, the medical bills outpace the income Ed earns as an independent roofer to such a degree that nothing short of a miracle will save him. Enter Sharon, who has problems of her own — estranged son, alcoholism — and who is in equal need of saving.
One of the more refreshing things about “Ordinary Angels” is that a romance isn’t forced to bloom as it might in, say, your average Hallmark movie. Director Jon Gunn focuses acutely on the uncomfortable dynamics that emerge from this unlikely relationship, forged and held together by a shared sense of Christian duty. Sharon’s tenacity, which earned her the nickname “Sharon Brockovitch” among the film crew, becomes a simple yet effective example of the transforming power of loving your neighbor, while Ed’s reluctant acceptance of her help demonstrates the importance of receiving grace when it’s offered. The effective climax, shot largely in Winnipeg, takes place during the 1994 winter storm that froze the Ohio River.
The success of inspirational exercises like this one are largely contingent on the strength of the performances, and on that score, “Ordinary Angels” delivers. The dependable Swank gives a strong performance in the lead, handling a Southern accent with aplomb and showing the same pluck and courage that helped her win two Oscars. Ritchson, slightly slimmed down from his role as the titular character in Prime Video’s “Reacher,” plays Ed with hulking grace. His silent reactions to Swank’s unsolicited advice are priceless, and when she suggests that he divest himself of his real estate holdings, his answer (“I’m not selling”) momentarily transforms him into a Western hero. Nancy Travis and Tamala Jones provide solid support as Ed’s devoted mother and Sharon’s best friend.
The script spent years in development, with Meg Tilly and Kelly Fremon Craig working on individual drafts. The finished product feels worked over, its rough edges sanded smooth and flattened out. Ed’s mother’s kind admonishment (“Don’t lose your faith over this”) represents the extent of the film’s preachiness. Yet it’s this kind of soft sell, coupled with all-around professionalism, that is the Nashville-based Kingdom Story Company’s stock-in-trade. Their landmark distribution deal with Lionsgate yielded a string of consecutive successes with faith-based audiences — including last year’s “Jesus Revolution” — and shows no sign of reversing course. Originally slated for an October release, “Ordinary Angels” leapt out of the path of the Taylor Swift “Eras” juggernaut, and now seems poised for a soft landing amidst a slow season for moviegoing. It will warm your heart like a mug of cocoa on a cold southeastern night.
Published March 06, 2024
