First Reformed trailer finds Ethan Hawke as a conflicted pastor

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Paul Schrader is a living Hollywood legend who has written several iconic films, including TAXI DRIVER, RAGING BULL and THE LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST, all directed by Martin Scorsese. Though the man hasn't delivered such notable work in a while, with his new movie, FIRST REFORMED, he seems to be in tip-top form. The movie starring Ethan Hawke as a troubled pastor has gotten a new trailer, one that teases an ominous, somber and fascinating character study.

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Here is the plot synopsis:

Reverend Ernst Toller (Ethan Hawke) is a solitary, middle-aged parish pastor at a small Dutch Reform church in upstate New York on the cusp of celebrating its 250th anniversary. Once a stop on the Underground Railroad, the church is now a tourist attraction catering to a dwindling congregation, eclipsed by its nearby parent church, Abundant Life, with its state-of-the-art facilities and 5,000-strong flock. When a pregnant parishioner (Amanda Seyfried) asks Reverend Toller to counsel her husband, a radical environmentalist, the clergyman finds himself plunged into his own tormented past, and equally despairing future, until he finds redemption in an act of grandiose violence.

The movie was selected for the main competition at the Venice Film Festival where it was bought by everyone’s new favorite studio, A24. The movie has received rave reviews so far, with critics hailing it as a stunning return to form for Schrader, whose recent credits include THE CANYONS (with Lindsay Lohan) and a few Nicolas Cage movies. Hawke looks sensational in the movie, and it truly looks like a tremendous character study by the man who perfected the model with TAXI DRIVER all those years ago. So, yes, I am going to see this.

FIRST REFORMED hits theaters June 22.