A Little Prayer Review: Unexpected Connections

Angus MacLachlan’s A Little Prayer is an intimate and emotional drama that never goes over-the-top and benefits from excellent performances.

A Little Prayer takes place in a small Southern town and features Strathairn as Bill, a serious and mild-mannered man with a business of his own, which he manages alongside his son David (Will Pullen). His life is rather cosy and tranquil, as he lives with his kind wife Venida (Celia Weston) in the suburbs, and has David round the back with his wife, Tammy (Jane Levy). One day, though, Bill starts suspecting that his son is having an affair with secretary Narcedalia (Dascha Polanco), which compels him to conduct a sort of personal investigation. Matters aren’t helped by the arrival of her daughter, Patti (Anna Camp), who is escaping a troubled marriage and can’t seem to control her small and rather quiet daughter.

A Little Prayer’s central conflict may involve David and his potential affair, as well as his struggles with the bottle, but the movie ends up being all about Bill and Tammy. Strathairn, a character actor who’s seemingly incapable of giving a false or uninteresting performance, plays the former as a quietly serious man who has tried to help his family through the years but is starting to have regrets about the way he’s handled some aspects of his life. Most of us have known someone like Bill: a mild-mannered older man who struggles at conveying his feelings, and has a strong sense of duty and morals.

Elsewhere, Levy gives an equally excellent performance as Tammy. She is a woman of few words and a seemingly stereotypical housewife who may or may not know about her husband’s affairs. But as the movie plays, we learn that she doesn’t talk much for a reason, and that she has a better connection with her father-in-law than with her husband. That doesn’t mean she’s as dishonest as David or that there’s something sexual going on between her and Bill. It means that she considers both of them to be kindred spirits, and that she’s found someone who understands her and considers her more than her own husband.

This, of course, turns Tammy into a sort of tragic figure. MacLachlan’s screenplay implies that she comes from a troubled family and past, and that Bill and her family pretty much rescued her and gave her a better life. She’s thankful, but as Bill pretty much tells her late in the proceedings, it isn’t reason enough for her to stay with a cheating and alcoholic husband. A lot has been done for her; now, she must do something for herself, even if that involves the rupture of a seemingly idyllic marriage. A certain decision Tammy makes, for example, makes it clear that she doesn’t really want to have a family with David, and represents a breaking point both for her relationship and the way Bill considers his son.

All of the above results in a movie that can be quietly devastating at times, taking advantage of its well-rounded characters to make the viewer relate to them and probably cry. But thankfully, A Little Prayer never turns into a melodrama, keeping most of its character interactions suitably realistic, and making sure that what’s left unsaid ends up being as important as the dialogue itself.

The script manages to develop its protagonists –mainly Bill and Tammy– as three-dimensional and believable individuals, making the narrative feel like something that could happen (and probably happens) all the time in small American towns. The story does feel a bit predictable, though, but that isn’t such a problem when the emotions are conveyed so powerfully.

MacLachlan directs A Little Prayer with a simple visual style, making use of tripod-bound, rather static shots and long takes. And when he moves his camera, most of his shots have extremely blurry backgrounds, with little focal length and lots of bokeh, which can be disorienting. But even if the film ends up being visually simplistic, said style doesn’t take away from its emotional power. A Little Prayer benefits from excellent central performances, a touching story, and deeply human and relatable characters. It’s the kind of film that doesn’t get made anymore, but that we definitely shouldn’t lose completely.

A Little Prayer will be released in select US theatres on August 29, 2025 with a national rollout to follow.