A woman tries to pass her unconventional family off as a wholesome churchgoing household in this comedy. Eileen Cleary (Kathleen Turner) is a devout Catholic housewife who is a tireless volunteer at her church, ready to help with a fund-raising effort or deliver meals to shut-ins at a moment's notice. Eileen's pastor, Monsignor Murphy (Richard Chamberlain), is impressed enough to nominate her for the honor of "Catholic Woman of the Year," and when she learns that full absolution of all her past sins is one of the perks that comes with the honor, she's determined to win. However, Eileen also finds out that there's a hitch -- the nominees are expected to invite the Archbishop to their home for dinner, and her household hardly seems like the picture of moral well-being. Her husband Frank (Michael McGrady) struggles with a drinking problem, her son Frank Jr. (Jason Ritter) is in the midst of a divorce and is involved with a woman who is not Catholic, and her daughter Shannon (Emily Deschanel) is a lesbian who is about to marry her partner Angela (Angelique Cabral) and is already carrying their child. Does Eileen stand a chance against her longtime rival Agnes Dunn (Sharon Lawrence), who is also in the running for the title' THE PERFECT FAMILY was the first feature film from director Anne Renton.