Ed Harris has this face. It’s a landscape of crags and intense, blue-eyed skepticism that makes him the perfect guy to play a priest who doesn’t really believe in anything anymore. In the 1999 movie The Third Miracle, Harris plays Father Frank Shore. He’s a "postulator." Basically, his job for the Vatican is to go around debunking claims of miracles. He’s the guy who tells a grieving family that the "weeping statue" is just a leaky pipe. It’s a cynical gig. It wears you down.
Honestly, most religious movies are either way too preachy or weirdly aggressive about being secular. This one is different. It’s a moody, rain-soaked procedural that feels more like a 70s detective noir than a Sunday school lesson. Directed by Agnieszka Holland—who has a real eye for the gritty, unpolished side of spirituality—the film tackles a question that most of us actually wrestle with: What do you do when you want to believe, but the world keeps giving you reasons not to?
The Gritty Reality of Canonization
The plot kicks off when a statue of the Virgin Mary in a Chicago convent starts bleeding. It's not just a few drops; it’s a lot. And it supposedly cured a young girl of terminal lupus. The local community is losing their minds. They want a local woman, Helen O'Regan, to be sainted. Enter Father Frank. He’s nicknamed "The Postulator" because he's so good at finding the fraud.
What’s fascinating about The Third Miracle is how it treats the bureaucracy of the Catholic Church. It isn't some mystical, glowing institution here. It’s a messy, political, and frankly, somewhat corporate entity. The Vatican needs a win, but they also need to make sure they aren’t embarrassed by a hoax. Frank is sent in to find the dirt.
He meets Helen’s daughter, Roxane, played by Anne Heche. She’s an atheist. She’s angry. She resents the fact that her mother spent more time being "holy" than being a mom. This dynamic is the heart of the movie. It’s not about light beams coming from the sky; it’s about the wreckage left behind by people who chase the divine.
Why Ed Harris is the Secret Sauce
Ed Harris gives one of his most underrated performances here. You’ve seen him as the tough guy or the villain, but as Father Frank Shore, he’s vulnerable in a way that’s almost uncomfortable to watch. He’s a man who has looked at too many fake miracles and seen too much human desperation. He smokes. He drinks. He looks like he hasn't slept since the late 80s.
There’s this one scene where he’s talking about how he used to feel God’s presence, and now it’s just silence. It’s heartbreaking. He isn't some saintly figure; he’s a working-class guy from a neighborhood where faith is a survival tactic, not a lifestyle choice. His performance grounds the entire movie The Third Miracle in a reality that feels lived-in.
Contrast that with Armin Mueller-Stahl as Cardinal Werner. He’s the antagonist, sort of. He’s a man of rules and cold, hard tradition. He doesn't care about the "feeling" of faith; he cares about the structure of the Church. The tension between Frank’s messy search for truth and Werner’s rigid adherence to protocol is where the movie gets its intellectual teeth.
The Cinematography of Doubt
Agnieszka Holland, working with cinematographer Jerzy Zieliński, didn't make a "pretty" movie. Chicago looks grey. The lighting is harsh. Even the church interiors feel heavy and oppressive rather than uplifting. This was a deliberate choice.
When you think about the movie The Third Miracle, you don't think about golden rays of sun. You think about shadows. This visual style mirrors the internal state of the characters. They are all walking through a fog. The "miracle" itself—the bleeding statue—is presented without much fanfare. It’s just there. It’s messy and confusing and kind of gross. It forces the viewer to decide what they think about it, rather than the director telling you what to feel.
Real-Life Context: How the Church Actually Does This
People often wonder if the process shown in the film is real. Mostly, yeah. The Catholic Church actually has a rigorous process for canonization.
👉 See also: Why the stick figure with gun is still the king of internet animation
- It starts with the "Informative Process" at the local level.
- Then it moves to the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.
- They really do look for medical evidence to prove a "miracle" has no scientific explanation.
- Traditionally, there was an official role called the Advocatus Diaboli or Devil's Advocate.
The movie simplifies things for drama, but the "investigative" nature of it is surprisingly accurate to how the Vatican operates. They are more skeptical of miracles than the average person might think.
The Anne Heche Factor
We have to talk about Anne Heche. She was often a polarizing figure in Hollywood, but in The Third Miracle, she is incredible. She provides the necessary friction. Without Roxane, the movie could have easily slid into a boring theological debate. She makes it personal.
Her character represents everyone who has been hurt by religion. She isn't a "villain" for being an atheist; she’s a person with a valid grievance. The movie doesn't try to "convert" her, which is refreshing. It respects her anger. The chemistry—or lack thereof, in a romantic sense—between her and Harris is handled with a lot of maturity. There's a mutual recognition of pain that goes deeper than a standard movie romance.
Misconceptions About the Ending
People get the ending of The Third Miracle wrong all the time. Some think it’s a total validation of faith. Others think it’s a cynical take-down. It’s actually neither. It’s about the "third" miracle mentioned in the title.
The first miracle is the statue. The second is the girl being cured. But the third? That’s the one that happens inside the person. It’s the shift in perspective. It’s the moment Frank realizes that whether the statue is "real" or not matters less than the effect it has on the human spirit. It’s a subtle point that often gets lost in the shuffle of the plot.
How It Ranks Against Other Religious Cinema
If you look at films like The Exorcist or The Song of Bernadette, they usually fall into horror or hagiography. The Third Miracle sits in this weird middle ground. It’s a drama. It’s a mystery. It feels a bit like Spotlight (2015) but with a supernatural element.
💡 You might also like: Who Plays Ginny From Harry Potter: The Bonnie Wright Story You Probably Didn't Know
It’s definitely better than the schmaltzy stuff you see on faith-based streaming services. It’s "human-quality" storytelling because it allows for doubt. It allows for the possibility that maybe none of it is real, and that the "miracles" are just coincidences we use to make sense of a cruel world. That honesty is what makes it stand out decades later.
Looking for the Film Today
Finding a high-quality version of The Third Miracle can be a bit of a chore. It wasn't a massive blockbuster, so it’s not always front-and-center on Netflix or Max. You usually have to dig into the "rent" section of Amazon or find an old DVD. It’s worth the search, though.
Especially if you’re tired of movies that have all the answers. This film has questions. Lots of them. And it doesn't feel the need to wrap everything up in a neat little bow at the end.
Actionable Takeaways for Movie Lovers
If you're planning to watch or re-watch this film, here is how to get the most out of the experience:
- Watch it as a detective story first. Don't worry about the religious themes right away. Follow Father Frank as if he’s a private investigator. It makes the pacing feel much tighter.
- Pay attention to the background characters. The film does a great job of showing the "crowd" around the miracle—the people selling souvenirs, the protesters, the desperate parents. It’s a great study in human behavior.
- Compare it to Agnieszka Holland’s other work. If you like this, check out Europa Europa or Mr. Jones. She specializes in characters caught in massive, uncaring systems.
- Look for the "Third" Miracle. See if you can spot the exact moment the title refers to. It’s not explicitly labeled, so it’s fun to debate with whoever you’re watching with.
The movie The Third Miracle remains a powerful piece of cinema because it treats the audience like adults. It knows you’re skeptical. It knows you’ve been let down. And it asks you, despite all that, what would it take for you to believe in something again? It’s a heavy question, but the film handles it with grace, grit, and some really great acting.