When life seems to be at its lowest, faith might just be your only life buoy. Henry Poole is here tells you just that.

Henry Poole (Luke Wilson) wasn’t going to live long with only 6 weeks after being diagnosed with an incurable disease. Without even negotiating the price of a rundown house in Los Angeles with his real estate agent, the man without hope sealed the deal immediately, just wanting to live his last days in complete solitude, with vodka and junk food as his best companions.

However, his plan to go quietly into the night got disrupted when his neighbour, Esperanza (Adriana Barraza) discovered a stain, which she believed to be a face of Christ, on the stucco wall of his home. The very persistent Mexican-American widow then brought her friends and pastor Father Salazar (George Lopez) to witness and prove to Henry that the face of God exists on his wall, and that hope is just round the corner.

Follow Henry’s journey as the miracles of Millie (Morgan Lily) and Patience (Rachel Seiferth) that come from touching the stain, warm your heart, and how he struggles with his beliefs that every miracle which happened was just pure coincidence, unlike the faith shown by every other character in the show.

Henry Poole is here is an inspirational film with even the characters’ names such as Dawn, Patience, Esperanza and the occasional scenes of sunrise, representing the start of a new fresh day. Feel every inch of happiness and sadness with many close-up shots of its cast. The tears of joy in the eyes of the actors not only leave you with a warm fuzzy feeling in your heart, you may also begin to believe that maybe, just maybe, faith is able to make dreams come true. It indeed is an uplifting film to watch when you’re looking for a glimmer of hope in life.

Playing the depressed Henry Poole had led Luke Wilson to be a dull, less than memorable character, unlike his role as Matt Saunders in My Super Ex-Girlfriend in 2006 where he was much livelier and exciting to watch.

And though the film might start off leaving you with unanswered questions in the beginning, for instance: why Henry bought the house without negotiating, why Millie was recording every conversation that Henry was in, and why Esperanza was calling her pastor suspiciously, fret not; Henry Poole is here [this part doesn’t quite answer the first… do these questions get answered in the end? Or do they not matter as the film unfolds?] still has a heart-warming plot that is bound to make you feel good.
Also, listen closely to the music like “Believe” by The Bravery, Badly Drawn Boy’s “Promise”, “Only You” by Joshua Radin etc in this film, you will realise that they are equally as touching as the scenes in the show. They link with each scene so well that you might be moved to tears.
However, if you’re a firm believer that miracles don’t happen, you may pooh pooh Henry Poole is here as pure crap, a film where typical fairy-tale endings happen.

Movie Details
Opens: May 14
Duration: 99 min
Language: English
Rating: PG
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Director: Mark Pellington
Cast: Luke Wilson, Radha Mitchell, Adriana Barraza, Morgan Lily