Father Stu (2022)

★★★
I applaud Mark Wahlberg’s determination to make films that he could show his kids. If this new direction in his career provides personal and spiritual fulfillment, then I hope the best for him, and I look forward to seeing what he has in store for us. I wish he didn’t regret his involvement in Boogie Nights (1997). It’s a masterpiece of writing and acting, with a soundtrack loaded with many iconic ‘70s and ‘80s hits, all incorporated seamlessly into the action. It helped solidify his position as a dependable leading man, one that was integral in shedding his Marky Mark persona. In making Father Stu, he invested millions of his own money into its production, much like Mel Gibson had done years earlier for his own faith-based film, The Passion of the Christ. (Getting Gibson to co-star was a smart decision.) It tells the story of Father Stuart Long, a former boxer who became a priest after a near death experience. Wahlberg has played gritty characters before, but this time he gets to bring one to redemption, displaying his range as an actor in the process. It’s a remarkable job.

In Helena, Montana, Stuart Long (Wahlberg) has wrapped up his boxing career and has no direction in his life. On a whim, he decides to move to Hollywood to become an actor, much to his mother’s chagrin. He arrives in Los Angeles and gets a job in a grocery store because he thinks he can meet contacts in the entertainment industry this way who can help him get his foot in the door. His plan leads nowhere, and he’s disgruntled about his lack of success. While at work, he meets Carmen (Teresa Ruiz) and is immediately smitten. She rejects his advances, but he doesn’t give up and goes to her church to meet her. She’s still not impressed, but Stu is undeterred. Once he starts showing his commitment, she drops her guard a little. He doesn’t change certain aspects about himself. He’s still prone to swearing, and his attempts to ingratiate himself in the church come across as just a ploy to get near Carmen.

His father Bill (Gibson) lives in L.A. and they don’t get along. He’s skeptical of his son’s desire to get involved in the Catholic Church because he’s an unbeliever and raised his son without religion. Stu eventually gets baptized, and he gradually shows genuine interest in exploring his faith. A fateful night changes his path forever. An accident causes him to fly off his motorcycle and get run over by a car. When he wakes up from his coma, he believes God chose him to be His servant. In much the same way he wanted to be an actor, Stu shocks everyone by declaring his desire to enter the priesthood. This brings him to a seminary, where Monsignor Kelly (Malcolm McDowell) requires some convincing to allow someone with a criminal record to pursue studies there.

Stuart does indeed get into trouble. He led a tough life before finding his calling, and Mark Wahlberg’s performance is entirely convincing. Stuart’s mother Kathleen (Jacki Weaver) has a line that could easily be interpreted as a joke, but I believe it was deliberately inserted as a roundabout way for us to conceptualize a background for Stuart that precedes the start of the movie. Carmen tells Kathleen that Stuart is about to make a mistake. Carmen is referring to his decision to become a priest, but Kathleen, in flustered manner, thinks Stuart means to get into porn, presumably because he failed to become an actor. Wahlberg played fictional porn star Dirk Diggler in 1997. Over the next 25 years, he played conflicted or disreputable characters. There’s Izzy Cole (Rock Star), Bobby Mercer (Four Brothers) and Danny Lugo (Pain & Gain), among others. Stuart the character is meant to embody these men, not so much in their most extreme, but in our distant memory of them as deeply flawed people. Take bits and pieces of them and combine them with Stuart as we meet him here in the opening scenes, and we have two decades of history right there to kick us off. When we get to the powerful ending, with Father Stuart fully embracing his acceptance into the Catholic Church, it marks the conclusion of one journey and the start of another.

Mark Wahlberg is a deeply committed Catholic, and Father Stu is the perfect vehicle for him to share the redemptive power of his faith. Pre-priest Stuart was on the wrong path, but his chance meeting with Carmen forever changed him. In time, he started attending confession and wanted a course correction to bring him closer to God. He was a champion boxer, but he became another kind of champion to many people. I’ve given props to Wahlberg for his performance and production duties, but I cannot overlook director and screenwriter Rosalind Ross, who guided the story beautifully. This is her directorial debut, and I’m completely unfamiliar with her. Based on this one movie, though, she shows that she can competently tell a story and insert subtext effectively to make larger points. It works. What else can she do? If she collaborates with Wahlberg again, then hopefully the result will be as impressive as this.

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