''Joshua'' is a 2002 American

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

based on the novel of the same name by Joseph F. Girzone. It was produced by Crusader Entertainment LLC and directed by Jon Purdy.

Plot

The movie is about a mysterious man named Joshua who appears in a small town named Auburn and begins changing the lives of everyone he meets, simply by being around them. Joshua takes up residence in a barn that he rents from Joan Casey to use as his home and woodcarving shop. To the surprise of a local priest, the roof does not leak after Joshua moves in, despite the many holes in it. The more time Joshua spends in town, the more attention he draws to himself simply by doing what he does. He begins by rebuilding the

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

Church which was destroyed during a storm the year before. He gets the attention of many locals by carrying a huge log of ash through town and out to his barn, some estimates range that it weighs at least 300 pounds. Later, Father Tordone of the local Catholic church hires him to carve a statue of the

Apostle Peter An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary. The word is derived from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", itself derived from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to se ...

, to which Joshua responds that it should be made of ash and that he "knows Peter". Joshua spends his next few weeks helping out anyone he meets, who in return help him rebuild the Baptist Church. He intervenes in a Tent Revival, where a con artist is tricking people into believing that he is healing people through the power of God. Joshua tells him, "You don't have to do it this way", and proceeds to restore sight to a blind woman sitting in the audience. Father Tordone becomes very suspicious of Joshua's behavior and motives, and tries to convince the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

to step in and stop him before he gains more followers and creates his own cult. It isn't until Joshua resurrects a man from the dead that the Catholic Church takes interest in him and invites him to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Cast

Tony Goldwyn Anthony Howard Goldwyn (born May 20, 1960) is an American actor, singer, producer, director, and political activist. He made his debut appearing as Darren in the slasher film '' Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives'' (1986), and had his breakthr ...

as Joshua /

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

* F. Murray Abraham as Father Tordone *

Kurt Fuller Kurt Fuller (born September 16, 1953) is an American character actor. He has appeared in a number of television, film, and stage projects. He is known for his roles in the films ''No Holds Barred'' and ''Ghostbusters II'' (both 1989), ''Wayne' ...

as Father Pat Hayes * Stacy Edwards as Maggie *

Giancarlo Giannini Giancarlo Giannini (; born 1 August 1942) is an Italian actor and voice actor. He won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor for his performance in '' Love and Anarchy'' (1973) and received an Academy Award nomination for '' Seven Beaut ...

as the Pope * Eddie Bo Smith Jr. as Theo * Michael Guido as Aaron * Matt Zeigler as Kevin *

Colleen Camp Colleen Celeste Camp (born June 7, 1953) is an American character actress and producer. After appearing in several bit parts, she had a lead role in the comedy '' The Swinging Cheerleaders'' (1974), followed by roles in two installments of the ' ...

as Joan Casey * Marc Grapey as Steve Casey * Rich Komenich as Ray Persini * Dale Calandra as Leo Persini * Cedric Young as Charlie * Tim Grimm as Bishop Anderson * Jordan Allen as Michael * James Meeks as Monroe * Tim Decker as Reverend Daily The Christian band

Third Day Third Day was a Christian rock band formed in Marietta, Georgia in 1991. The band was founded by lead singer Mac Powell, guitarist Mark Lee (both of whom were the only constant members) and Billy Wilkins. The band's name is a reference to the ...

also appears in a concert.

Music

The soundtrack includes music by

Michael W. Smith Michael Whitaker Smith (born October 7, 1957) is an American musician who has charted in both contemporary Christian music, contemporary Christian and mainstream charts. His biggest success in mainstream music was in 1991 when "Place in This Worl ...

Jaci Velasquez Jacquelyn Davette "Jaci" Velasquez (; born October 15, 1979) is an American actress and contemporary Christian and Latin pop singer and songwriter, performing in both English and Spanish. Velasquez has sold almost three million albums in the U ...

, Mark Schultz,

Point of Grace Point of Grace is an all-female contemporary Christian music vocal group. The current trio consists of Shelley Breen, Denise Jones, and Leigh Cappillino. The group started out as a quartet in 1991, with original members Breen and Jones, as wel ...

, and

. Third Day makes an appearance in the film at a concert where they play "Come Together".

Reception and box office

Released April 19, 2002, the film went on to garner $1,461,635 during its run. It had its widest release in 43 theaters. Produced on an estimated budget of $9,000,000, the film lost over $7,000,000 and qualified as a

box-office bomb A box-office bomb is a film that is unprofitable or considered highly unsuccessful during its theatrical run. Although any film for which the combined production budget, marketing, and distribution costs exceed the revenue after release has te ...

as a result.

References

External links

* *{{Rotten Tomatoes, 1113658_joshua 2002 films 2002 drama films American drama films Artisan Entertainment films Paramount Pictures films Films with screenplays by Brad Mirman Films based on American novels Resurrection in film 2000s English-language films 2000s American films