 writer of taxi driver and raging bull director of american gigolo mishima and cat people veteran american auteur paul schrader has staged one of the most spectacular of recent cinematic comebacks with this acutely observed characterbased drama constructed around oscartipped ethan hawke s magnetic performance it is an incisively intelligent and burningly topical film about faith doubt guilt and desire in the 21st century a fortysomething clergyman of relentless selfsearching introspection toller finds himself questioning his ethics and presumptions with renewed vigour after encountering ecowarrior parishioner michael a remarkable performance by previously littleknown philip ettinger this crisis of conscience brings toller into conflict with his materialisticallyminded religious superiors spurring him towards increasingly radical perspectives and eventually actions inspired by such classics of troubled faith as bresson s diary of a country priest schrader a scholar of film as well as being a distinguished practitioner has crafted a visually striking compellingly humane and thematically complex work a transcendental miniepic which has already earned hosannas of praise from critics and audiences all over the world neil young paul schrader  