Saint Philip Neri: I Prefer Heaven

I like spiritual dvd's, and buy a lot of them. Although I'm not Catholic, I have quite a few Catholic dvd's I like - and this one tops the list as one of the most inspiring ones I've ever seen. It's spiritually moving, charming and entertaining all at once. The pamphlet that came with the dvd tells the actual life of St. Philip Neri, & it differs in some ways from the movie, but I don't have a problem with that since I felt the presence of a Saint in the movie.I buy spiritual dvd's for inspiration and entertainment. I'm not necessarily interested in a strict adherence to the facts, as long as the spirit of the Saint is accurately depicted, and it is in this dvd. Also, the children in the movie were incredibly enchanting - sweet, cute, & in the case of Half Loaf, intimidating! They were spectacular actors - I couldn't take my eyes off them.Lastly, the actor who played St. Philip Neri was as close to BEING St. Philip Neri as any actor could get! As I watched the film, there was no intermediate time between seeing the actor as an actor portraying a saint, and his "being" the saint. He WAS the saint from the beginning.Without hesitation, I strongly recommend this dvd. Oh, and did I say it was a top notch movie in every other way? It is.

Moving version of Saint Philip Neri. This 200 minute film does not drag on.

I was delighted at how quickly this DVD arrived in the mail. It is one of the best movies I've seen on saints! I have watched it several times and know I will watch it again. Though it's in Italian with English subtitles, it's very engaging. I had never heard of St. Philip Neri before, but his humor, easy-going nature, big heart, and desire to help the downtrodden are beautifully conveyed in this movie. The acting is very good, the story well-written. It's 205 mins. long and the time passes quickly because the story is so well done, it never drags for a moment. It is very inspiring and uplifting, as well as being entertaining. I'd recommend this to anyone.

I just finished watching this movie, over two days because it is very long, and loved it. I read all of the reviews, good and bad, and then wikipedia to see if I agreed that the movie had no factual basis. I didn't see anything in wikipedia that was outrageously at odds with the movie. It talks about his humor and wit, miracles, the oratory and there is a link at the bottom to flying saints. But even if it took some creative license, it was a wonderful film. I was always taught that a miracle is something that inspires faith. If that is true, then this movie is a miracle. The acting is excellent and the characters lovable. A sweet, extremely enjoyable and uplifting movie. It is in italian with english subtitles, but I didn't mind that at all.

This is a beautiful film - good and long, 2 hours - but well worth viewing! Content, acting and staging are done very well. The single draw-back is having to view the subtitles in English because it's in Italian.Fr Xavier Nacke, OSB

This film was excellent and am so happy the Caholic Store had copies to sell; giving excellent service. It is a wonderful addition to my collection and have shown to two groups of friends already and plan to show again. You feel warm and happy as well as educated with this film - just the right actor to play St. Philip's Neri's character - very well done. Recommend everyone should have a copy of this DVD. Thank you.

A fantastic production, that captures the essence of the life of this very loving, humble & simple man. The film focuses on the quest of Philip Neri to love and care for the most vulnerable; The Street Children of Rome. Pull out the tissue paper , as this film will pull at your heart strings. A MUST SEE !!!

GREAT movie