FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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Laura Linney, Maggie Smith and Kathy Bates Set Out in Search of a Miracle
“The Miracle Club” Releases in Theatres Nationwide on July 14, 2023
TORONTO, July 4, 2023 – levelFILM is releasing THE MIRACLE CLUB, directed by Irish filmmaker and Emmy Award® nominee Thaddeus O’Sullivan (Call the Midwife, Vera, Hidden Assets) in Canadian theatres on July 14, 2023. The film features a heavy-hitting cast, starring Academy Award® nominee Laura Linney and Academy Award® winners Maggie Smith and Kathy Bates, and Agnes O’Casey. THE MIRACLE CLUB is a charming, compelling story about forgiveness, faithfulness, friendship, healing and grief as it details four women’s pilgrimage to Lourdes, France, each in search of their own miracle.
“What really enthralled me about the story is how three strong characters confront one another and then, by embracing truth, they understand that the miracle they have all been looking for is right in front of them – in the strength of their friendships and unshakeable togetherness,” said Thaddeus O’Sullivan, Emmy-nominated Irish film-maker. “What we have achieved together is to make an emotional movie that is truly joyous, uplifting and aspirational.”
Set in 1967, THE MIRACLE CLUB is a heartwarming film that follows the story of three generations of close friends, Lily (Maggie Smith), Eileen (Kathy Bates), and Dolly (Agnes O’Casey) of Ballygar, a hard-knocks community in Dublin, who have one tantalizing dream: to win a pilgrimage to the sacred French town of Lourdes, that place of miracles that draws millions of visitors each year. When the chance to win presents itself, the women seize it. However, just before their trip, their old friend Chrissie (Laura Linney) arrives in Ballygar for her mother’s funeral, dampening their good mood and well-laid plans. The women secure tickets and, accompanied by their priest, set out on the journey, that they hope will change their lives, with Chrissie, a skeptical traveller, joining in place of her mother. The glamour and sophistication of Chrissie, who has just returned from a nearly 40-year exile in the United States, are not her only distancing traits: Old wounds are reopened along the way, forcing the women to confront their pasts even as they travel in search of a miracle. Their shared traumas can only be healed by the curative power of love and friendship.
THE MIRACLE CLUB is based on a story by Jimmy Smallhorne, with a screenplay by Smallhorne, Timothy Prager and Joshua D. Maurer. The film is distributed in Canada by levelFILM.
The film’s extraordinary ensemble includes Laura Linney (You Can Count on Me, The Squid and the Whale, HBO’s John Adams), Kathy Bates (Misery, Fried Green Tomatoes, About Schmidt), Stephen Rea (The Crying Game, Michael Collins, V for Vendetta), Agnes O’Casey (BBC One’s Ridley Road), and the legendary Maggie Smith (Downton Abbey, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, California Suite).
For film information and to view the trailer, go to level.film/#/film/The-Miracle-Club.
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ABOUT LEVELFILM
Based in Toronto, Canada, levelFILM is the independent distribution company behind films such as I CAN ONLY IMAGINE, MAFIA MAMMA, THE INSPECTION, THE SWEARING JAR and the award-winning SCARBOROUGH. Founded in 2013, levelFILM specializes in acquiring, developing, marketing and selling captivatingly original, quality independent films in Canada and abroad. Between a growing catalogue of high-quality titles and projects in development, levelFILM’s goal is to create balance both on-screen and off. For more information, visit https://level.film.