I had to watch this movie again,

while I agree it may be thin in places, the overall plot made me want to see the end, I admired the dignity that Tom McCarthy displayed and I was pleased to see that there were good solid morals portrayed.

It took courage for Ian to sacrifice his youth (to atone for his mistake) and while he could have gone off the rails as someone suggested it was quite noble of him to draw strength from God and raise the kids like his own and never divulge the terrible secret of their mothers' past to them.

It is quite simply a nice but realistic movie, people are faced with choices like these everyday, most people actually chicken out!!!

Real Men & Women are those who do not need to shout to be heard but live with dignity and strength!!!

BEWARE OF FALSE REVIEWS & REVIEWERS. SOME REVIEWERS HAVE ONLY ONE REVIEW TO THEIR NAME. NOW WHEN ITS A POSITIVE REVIEW THAT TELLS ME THEY WERE INVOLVED WITH THE MOVIE. IF ITS A NEGATIVE REVIEW THEN THEY MIGHT HAVE A GRUDGE AGAINST THE FILM . NOW I HAVE REVIEWED OVER 200 HOLIDAY FILMS. I HAVE NO AGENDA. I AM HONEST

In this film a 19 year old college student Ian gets roped into babysitting his brothers kids once again. He gets very mad that his sister in law promises to be home at a certain time and she isn't. This makes IAN very mad because he just missed an important date with his girlfriend who he hardly see's. They both go to desperate colleges. He was kind enough to babysit however he feels disrespected when his sister in law ruins his plans.

Once his brother comes home after work he see's that IAN is babysitting. Ian tells his brother things he believes about his wife including the fact that he thinks she is cheating on him. The two brothers have a minor fight and IAN'S brother ends up in an auto accident and dies.

A short time later Ian's sister in-laws overdoses and dies. Ian is racked with guilt now because he feels responsible for the deaths of both people. A short time later he drops out of school to become the guardian of his brothers children and step children.

I enjoyed this film. The ending was not what I expected because I did want something more elaborate.

The acting is fine in this and the pacing of the film is very solid. I really would not calls this "A Christmas Film" but it is about having faith. The message in this film I do support. Its about making amends and saving yourself in the process.

Saint Maybe (1998) (TV) was directed by Michael Pressman and based on the novel by Anne Tyler. Thomas McCarthy plays Ian Bedloe, a teenager who has a fine home, loving family, and lovely girlfriend. For reasons that are complex, and not clear to Ian or to us, Ian initiates a chain of action that leads to tragedy. Naturally, he feels tremendous guilt. The movie is about what you do when you're a good person who has made an irrevocable mistake.

Anne Tyler is an excellent author, and the film is faithful to the basic plot of her novel. The acting is uniformly good, and the production has the usual solid strength we expect from the Hallmark Hall of Fame.

This film probably won't make your all-time best 100 films list, but it's still worth seeing. Also, Anne Tyler's novel is definitely worth reading. I had read the novel years ago, and just saw the film, so I can't make specific comments about the degree to which the script reflects the novel. Still, my impression is that this is a solid and careful adaptation.