‘A Little Prayer’ Trailer: David Strathairn Warns Jane Levy About Infidelity in Critically Acclaimed Sundance Family Drama

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Angus MacLachlan is back directing for the big screen with drama “A Little Prayer.” The feature, which debuted at Sundance 2023, is thematically in line with MacLachlan’s former films, all family dramas: The filmmaker wrote “Junebug” and made his directorial debut with “Goodbye to All that” in 2013.

“A Little Prayer” stars David Strathairn as a father struggling to figure out how to guide his adult children without interfering in their lives. Yet after he discovers that his daughter-in-law (Jane Levy) may be in trouble, he can’t stand by any longer.

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The synopsis reads: “Bill (Strathairn) is a pillar of his Southern community: a business owner, a veteran, and the proud patriarch of an unruly but loving family. His daughter Patti (Anna Camp) has returned home after the collapse of her marriage, while his son David (Will Pullen) struggles to stay afloat. He has brought David into the family business, but harbors doubts about his discipline and commitment. Bill gravitates towards Tammy (Levy), his daughter-in-law and the only other person in his rambunctious household who values contemplation and repose. When Bill begins to suspect that David may be straying from his marital vows with a co-worker (Dascha Polanco), the father must confront the perplexing inscrutability of his son’s choices and their consequences for the rest of the family.”

MacLachlan previously worked as a playwright before adapting his own script for Phil Morrison’s “Junebug,” which was a breakout success at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. Lead star Amy Adams was nominated for an Oscar. MacLachlan later told IndieWire that the independent film has staggeringly shifted since its debut.

“The indie world is incredibly different from when ‘Junebug’ came out,” he said in 2014. “It was just after the peak of the ‘Reservoir Dogs’ time, where things at Sundance sold for lots of money. But then it got an Academy Award nomination [for Amy Adams]. And it played maybe 150 theaters. This was the time when there was still video. I think it made $6 million eventually. It made almost $3 million at the box office. Nowadays that’s unheard of. Even with Amy getting nominated, it still felt like a smaller film. Since then, I still have people who say they know or have seen ‘Junebug.'”

As for his film tastes, MacLachlan added, “There’s this hubris when you write a screenplay where you think it’s going to get made. At this point in my career, it’s sort of like, why not write the things that are important to you instead of trying to figure out what the marketplace is? Especially with independent film. It’s so hard to get anything made. Why not try to get the things made you really believe in? Even if you don’t believe in them and you’re just trying to follow the tune you imagine the market wants, the odds are that you’re still not going to get it done.”

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Music Box Films will release “A Little Prayer” in theaters August 29 inNYC at the Angelica and in LA at the Laemmle Royal and Laemmle Town Center, with a national rollout to follow. Check out the trailer below.

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