Manna from Heaven (PG, 2005)

When a bucket of money falls out of a truck, young Theresa convinces her family that the money is a gift from heaven to split up. Years later, Theresa, who has become a nun, decides that it is time to pay the money back, so she calls the eccentric group back together to repay the "loan." The problem is, nobody has the money, nobody wants to give back the money, they don't know to whom it belongs, and most of them can't stand each other. Theresa has some tall talking to do to get this querulous group on board, but her gift was always to see the best in everyone, and she eventually wins them over. Each one of them starts doing it for selfish reasons (Bunny and Ed are con artists who think they'll take the money and run; Inez, a hard-nosed casino card dealer is going to have no part in it until she starts falling for a secret service agent...) -- but in the process, get caught up in their community and something larger than themselves.

Sweet as treacle, this very sincere and well-meaning comedy begins when a bucket of money falls out of a truck and flutters down on a close knit family (and friends) in a lower middle class neighborhood in Buffalo, New York. What follows is an witty, intelligent, feel-good comedy about rediscovering hope at any age. MANNA FROM HEAVEN's cast is excellent and all star (including Jill Eikenberry, Shirley Jones, Louis Fletcher, Austin Pendelton, the late Frank Gorshin, and an almost unrecognizable Shelley Duvall. None of the dialogue rises to the talents of the actors although the movie maintains a charming, easy pace.