Grace and Gravity

Actor Bruce Marchiano, a doppelganger for Steve Carell, has played Jesus more than any other screen actor in history. Marchiano delivers a wonderful performance opposite the equally terrific British thespian Richard Brimblecombe in this Christian faith-based dramedy. Essentially a two-hander (with brief support from a couple of others) with a hint of Waiting for Godot, the story finds John (Marchiano), an American visiting the U.K., encountering Chris (Brimblecombe) at the very moment the latter is about to jump from a bridge to end his life. Although well-meaning, John intervenes with easy Christian platitudes, only to face cynical pushback from Chris. Soon, both men shed their surfaces to reveal twin souls experiencing true crises in their lives. Calling each other to account, they become brothers staring into the maw of oblivion—or perhaps at another go with life. Co-writer and director Andrew Walkington adroitly handles the pacing while the two leads create palpable chemistry. Recommended. (T. Keogh)