Mercy Streets (PG-13) No Rating

Estranged twin brothers -- one's a priest, one's an ex-con -- illustrate black and white choices between lack of faith and redemption in this Christian film.

Story

Just released from prison, John Moray (David White) is picked up by his crime boss Rome (Eric Roberts), who leans on him to do one last heist. Although John wants to go legit with a real estate deal in Boca Raton, Fla., he's forced to go along with Rome's counterfeit scheme until he can make an escape. He soon flees to the tidy home of his estranged twin brother Jeremiah -- an Episcopal deacon haunted by guilt at his brother's loss. The twins exchange lives when Rome finds Jeremiah and convinces him that he must participate in the counterfeit heist if he wants to save his brother's life.

Acting

White is persuasive in the dual twin roles, although John's streetwise cynicism is a little more convincing. With lank black hair hooding his eyes and long face, White gives a hard-edged gloss to both brothers' search for redemption. A tanned and well-fed Roberts goes for the gusto as the Satan figure, gleefully asking Jeremiah whether God's plan for him included robbing innocent people in order to save his brother.

Direction

Jon Gunn packages the morality tale in a fluid style, even throwing in contemporary crime flick touches such as freeze-framed shots. About halfway in, however, the action gets lost amid periodic cautionary lectures given to the increasingly desperate brothers by Jeremiah's cop roommate ("Jesus saved my life") or a knowing priest ("You can't just ignore God until you've got things all fixed up"). Gunn's attempts to build in dramatic tension are undercut once you know that in this film, the characters are not going to make the wrong choice. It's like a Disney movie with religious weight but without the merchandising.

Bottom Line

"Mercy Streets" might be delivered in a pseudo-hip, urban voice, but it's still a sermon.